The Agency: Tale of Agent Salamander
by Draconian Enigma
Summary: Set in a somewhat near future, this is an Alternate Universe story set in a gritty version of Fiore, Fairy Tail is one of the many independent agencies that work very loosely with the Government's Magical Enforcement Division, it is loosely based on the canon storyline but with some major changes. Come and follow the story of Agent Natsu "Salamander" Dragneel and the FTA.
1. Chapter 1

The Agency  
This story will be based in an alternate universe of FT where the world is set in the near future for us, so it will have material things from our world, i.e. cars, motorbikes, planes, cruise ships, but be set in the world of FT, I have made changes to aspects of characters and also some of their behaviours so consider this OOC and AU.

* * *

A man sat in a shadowy corner of a dark dive bar, sipping away at a glass of Jack Daniel's Whiskey and Coke, his dark green almost black eyes roaming around the rowdy bar, hovering for a moment on some guys getting agitated over a game at the pool table.

"You fucking cheater!" Yelled one of the drunken men. "You bumped the ball then shot from a different angle!"

"Fuck off I did, you fucking drunk cunt!" Shouted the man suspected of cheating.

"Who are you calling a cunt you fucking daft cunt!"

"I'm calling you one you fucking moronic cunt!"

The two men continued to argue until they broke out in a fight causing the bouncer to come over and throw them out of the bar but the fight and argument continues outside, the occasional "Cunt" loudly drifting in through the doors and windows and piercing the music.

The green eyed man continued to gaze around at the other patrons of the pub, studying them for any sign of trouble as he sips his drink.

"You know Sal, you aren't Lush… You can't function on the job while drunk." Said a woman as she gracefully dropped into the seat on the other side of the table from him, placing a new full glass of his favourite drink on the table. "You looked like you were about to run out."

The man looked across the table at the familiar face of his handler. "I didn't see you come in M, what do you have for me?"

"What, no thank you for the drink?" M chided playfully.

Sal smiles playfully at the beautiful woman in front of him. "Thank you M, so what have you got for me?"

M pulls a folder from her bag and places it on the table. "Kidnapping, all the details are in that dossier."

Sal opened it and was greeted with a photo of a blonde with chocolate brown eyes. "The city of Hargeon?"

"Yes, the Archivist has found out that she will be meeting the Doppler on a cruise ship called the Spirit of Innocence tomorrow night."

Sal grunts in annoyance at the name Doppler. "Is she a target or the bait for the real prey?"

M smiles deviously at the man before her. "She is both, all the information is in that dossier, you should finish your drink and head to your safe house in Hargeon as soon as possible."

"Before I do, this makes no mention of what room I can expect them to be in, there are a lot of places to hide in a cruise ship, which means a lot of places to look too…" Sal says as his eyes raise up from the paper to meet the blue eyes of his handler. "Especially one of the largest cruise ships in the world."

"We are unsure right now but the Archivist says to expect them to be in the rear third of the ship."

Sal lets out a long sigh and downs the last of his drink in one go, wiping his mouth he stands. "Winging it again are we?"

"Unfortunately." M replies as she too stands and collects her things. "Make sure to be at the docks by 8pm."

"Will do M." The green eyed man said as he picked up his backpack and headed out of the bar followed by the woman whose silvery white hair shimmers in the moonlight.

"Goodnight Sal." M said as she headed for her black Mercedes Benz.

"Night M." Sal threw over his shoulder as he put on a back motorbike helmet and got onto his Kawasaki Ninja H2R, starting it as the roar of an engine sounded behind him.

Looking over his shoulder and grinning in his helmet as he sees M spin her tires and rocket past him while she sends him a playful wink, the CLS 63 badge glinting in the streetlight.

"You're On!" Shouts Sal as he revs his bike and pops the clutch, standing the powerful bike on its rear tyre as the exhaust roars out of the straight pipes.

Bringing the front tyre back to the road he races after her, the supercharger in his bike whining and whirling as it force feeds air into the engine.

M laughs heartily in the cabin of her car as the headlight of her friend's bike gets closer and closer, she quickly shifts into the next gear and puts the pedal to the floor.

As he nears the car it spits fire from the exhaust as the sound of a new burst of power hammers in his ear drums, the flames illuminating the second part of the car's badge, AMG Black Edition.

"God we must me waking the neighbourhood real good tonight!" Sal cheers as run up alongside the performance sedan, he waves to his handler before racing past and getting in front of her.

As they reach the end of the long road they start to slow down for a red light, Sal moves over to the right and gives M room to park at the light.

"This is where we part ways hot stuff." M calls out playfully as she winds down her window.

"Heading home or to headquarters?" Sal asked as he lifted the visor up off his face.

"Home, I have to look after my brother and sister."

"Come on M, they are old enough to take care of themselves. Beast even goes on assignments too."

"They still need their big sis to look after them Sal, what about you and your big brother?"

"We know each other's capabilities and let each other do as they want, anyways he works in interrogation and training now."

M shrugs her shoulders and looks up at the traffic light. "Make sure you go right to the safe house Sal, we wouldn't want any Phantoms to find you."

"Heh they can try." He taps the fuel gauge on his bike. "Gotta fill up before I leave town, I'll take the highway and hammer it to Hargeon so I can get some sleep before the Op, let me know if we get any new info."

M nods and winds the window back up, heading left on the intersection while Sal turned off to the right and when to the nearest station.

As he pays for the fuel a police car pulls up behind his bike and both officers get out, one fills the car with the other checks out the bike in front of them.

"How can I help you officers?" Sal asked as he walks out of the building and over to his bike.

"Firstly we have had reports of a bike racing a car not long ago, just wanted to ask you a few questions." The officer beside the bike said.

"Sure, ask away."

"Where were you about 15 minutes ago?"

"At my house talking to some friends online and making plans to head to theirs for the night."

"And that's where you are heading now?"

"Yes."

"Which direction did you come from?"

Sal points down the road, opposite the way he actually came from. "I live about 10 minutes that way, pulled into here when I noticed I was getting low on fuel."

"Would you mind blowing into this please?" Said the officer as she held out a breathalyser. "Don't stop until it beeps."

Sal took a breath and wraps his lips around the Styrofoam insert and blows into it.

"Keep going, keep going…"

BEEP

"That's enough."

Sal pulled back as the officer took the insert out and binned it, waiting for the read out.

"You're clean, we'll get you to do one more test for us though. Lick this tab for me." She said as she held out a testing tab, putting it into a tube of liquid then shaking it after it was licked.

"Anything else officer?"

"Can I see your licence?" She said and inspects the plastic card she was given, looking up then back down, she hands it back.

"You're all good, but one more thing."

"What would that be ma'am?"

"Is this the new H2R?" The officer asked giddily as she pointed to his motorbike.

"Yep, just bought it recently."

"God I'm so jealous, I've been looking at one for a short while now, if I gave you my number could we maybe organise a test ride?" The officer asked hopefully as she unashamedly fangirls over the bike.

"Yeah sure, I don't mind."

"Sweet! Oh by the way, you are clean on the drug test too so you can leave in a sec." She said as she pocketed the vial into a pouch and grabbed her notepad, quickly scribbling down her mobile phone number then handing him the piece of paper.

"Thanks officer…?"

"Please, just call me Alexia Rose." She stated with a wink as she pointed up at his hair. "Salmon looks good on you."

"Thanks Alexia, I'll see if I'm free on the weekend and will give you a call later." Sal said as he put his helmet on then got on the bike.

"Bye for now cutie~" The officer said as she sashayed back to her patrol car and sliding into the passenger side.

Sal chuckled to himself and drove off down the street, heading up to the highway and speeding down the road to the city of Hargeon.

* * *

Hargeon City, 3:17 am

Sal rolled up into the garage of his safe house and closed the garage door, stretching his tired limbs from a long and hard ride as he walks to the door to the house. "What was that code again… ah yeah."

He puts in the code and enters the house, the house management A.I. calls out to him as it lights the way for him. "Good morning Agent Salamander."

"Cherry it's…" He looks at his watch. "3:20 am, I think it's still night time."

"But goodnight is for when you go to bed." It asked, confused.

"Easy now, don't fry a circuit again. Has logistics been keeping the inventory fresh?"

"Yes, last refresh was at 2pm yesterday."

"Good, I think I'll have a cup of tea before I go and pass out in the bed." The agent said as he made his way to the kitchen, hearing the kettle pop as it was heated up by the A.I.

"Thanks." Said Sal as he brewed his tea then drank it, heading to the master bedroom and having a quick shower before heading to bed.

"Goodnight Agent Salamander."

"Night Cherry."

* * *

11:49am

Sal wakes with a groan as light streams into the room through the windows, he turns his head to look outside then slowly sits up. "What's the time Cherry?"

"11:51 Agent Salamander, would you like me to start the coffee machine and get the coffee brewing?"

"Yes Cherry." He said as he got out of the bed and had a shower. "Any missed calls or messages I need to know about?"

"None from HQ, so nothing important."

"Perfect." Sal says as he finishes his shower and gets dressed, he heads to the kitchen and makes himself breakfast and drinks the coffee.

"Is the basement stock up to date?"

"Yes Agent Salamander."

"Good, I'll need to stock up for my assignment later."

After breakfast was devoured, Sal grabbed the dossier from his bag and headed to the basement, pressing his hand to the inside wall and accessing a biometrics scanner, after passing the check the walls all turned around to reveal a fully stocked armoury.

"Cherry could you bring up the schematic for the cruise ship titled Spirit of Innocence."

"Right away Sir." The A.I. replied as a holographic display hummed to life above the table in the centre of the room.

Sal glanced over at it on his way to an assortment of pistols, grabbing out his favourite tool, a Glock 20 Gen5 10mm pistol, attaching a suppressor to muzzle and resting it on the table in the middle of the room along with half a dozen extra mags and a box of sub-sonic ammo for the pistol.

"Get Agent Demon on the line, I need to see if she has any more information for me."

Ring Ring Ring

"Na… Sal, what can I do for you?"

"Morning M"

M giggles at him. "It's afternoon silly."

"Afternoon then, I was wondering if you had any new info for me."

"Well~… I caught Agent Fairy, Ever, sneaking into the house and trying to slip into my brother's room."

Sal chuckles and shakes his head gently. "Save the gossip for when I get back to HQ M."

"Can we drop the code names, I know you are on a job and I'm your handler but we are on a secure line and both of us are in places where we won't be eavesdropped on."

"That's fine with me Mira." Sal said as he sees his silvery white haired handler pop up on the holographic display and activates his side.

"So you wanted to know more if we have any new intel, Natsu?"

"Yes but first, why are you in a towel?"

Mira looks down and giggles as she brushes her wet hair. "I'm at my house, just got out of the shower and had to put it on because someone~ called me."

"You aren't at HQ?"

"I was but I have a photoshoot for the magazine at 2:30pm, so I'm home getting ready for it." Mira says as she takes in the sight of her agent, seeing him in black camouflage pants, black combat boots and a form fitting black long sleaved combat shirt.

"I still don't know how you manage to stay in the limelight and do clandestine missions at the same time." Natsu said as he loaded 15 rounds into each mag.

"Well to be fair, most of my job is now bossing a certain pink haired man around to my heart's content."

"And I thank you for your helpful advice." Natsu says as he rolls his eyes.

Mira giggled. "Don't be like that~ it's not like I've made you clean my house for me."

Natsu heads over to one of the shelves and grabs a knife, a mag-fed tranquiliser pistol with ammo and mags, and various non-lethal gadgets.

"Oh Natsu, the mission has to be done clean, so you don't have fifth freedom, no killing unless word comes in that the parameters have changed."

"Gotcha." He replied as he placed the equipment on the table then went to get a utility belt and an under arm holster for the pistol and a holster for the tranq pistol to be sat on the back of the belt.

"We believe that the meeting will be held in the rooms ranging from 400 to 600 in the aft section of the ship."

Looking back at the hologram as he put the gear on. "Cherry highlight those rooms for me."

"Right away Agent Salamander."

The specified rooms change from a soft blue hue to an almost golden yellow, showing their location on the ship.

"That's a fair way above boarding level."

"Yes it is a big ship after all, you'll have to work your way up then back down once the job is complete."

"And what about that bastard Doppler?"

"Incapacitate and prep him for custody, we are bringing in law enforcement to pick him up."

"So I have to work to a time window before the cops show up and make things harder?"

"Yes, we'll do our best to delay them but no promises."

"Ok, chances are they have a guy in the security room so I'll have to take them out first so I won't be detected and they warn everyone."

"Cherry can you highlight that for Agent Salamander."

"Right away Ma'am." The A.I. replies as it does as instructed.

"Hmm looks like I'll have to double back from the security room to the meeting place, can you light up the security camera too."

"Natsu I think it's best if you use the augmented reality contact lenses so you can keep track of all these cameras, I'll see if I can get a tap set up on them so we have cones of sight displayed for easy avoidance." Said Mira as she starts typing a message off to the Archivist.

Natsu nods and grabs a small container from a shelf and takes it to the table. "Good idea, might also take some tracking micro-drones so I can keep track of positions of any hostiles."

Watching him grab a small container filled with tiny spider-like drones Mira goes back to brushing her long and silky hair. "Don't forget your tac-com, we'll need it to manage everything and feed new objectives and intel to the HUD in you contacts."

"I know, I know, you drilled it into me hard enough that one time I forgot years ago that you don't need to bring it up every other mission." Natsu said with a slight chuckle in his voice.

He comes back to the table after collecting the box and starts filling the pouches on his belt and the holsters with the equipment he has lain out on the table.

"Keep your eyes on the table mister, I've got to get dressed." Mira said playfully as she pointed at him through the call, smiling as she spun around her chair and half sashayed half danced across her room.

"You know I'm sure all the guys and girls who buy the magazine you do a part in would kill to have you get naked while they watch."

"And very few people have the privilege to actually watch me as I'm comfortable with them, I think you are the only guy alive who has seen me naked." Mira said as she hung the towel up on a drying rack and rummaged through her bedside table.

"Keyword being "Alive" isn't it."

"Yup~, question, what colour should I wear?"

"Why are you asking me that?" Natsu asked as he looked up at the hologram display of her camera.

She stands up and faces him with her hands on her hips baring all for his eyes to see and frowning at him in mock frustration. "Because I value your opinion idiot."

Natsu rolls his eyes and takes in the view any man would kill to see. "White I guess, because it matches your hair."

"That wasn't so hard now was it~." She replies as she bends back over and rummages through her draws, pulling out a pair of white lace underwear. "Ohh I love this set, they are so cute~"

Natsu heads over to his bag and pulls out his tac-com then places it down on the table.

Turning back to the camera as she bends to put the white lacy thong on, her breasts hanging down due to their weight and size but still retaining their all natural shape perfectly. "Got everything you need?"

"I should have, I've got lock picks and the tac-com has a built in code breaker if I need it."

"Is it the newest model?"

"Yeah I just got it yesterday, while I was at HQ, R&D gave it to me for field testing. Said it was much faster than the old unit at breaking into the newer devices."

"Oh cool, I wonder when I'll be given mine." Mira said as she straightened up, her breasts bouncing with inertia.

"Depends on if my test goes well, from what I know Titania and Frosty both got given a test unit each as well for their missions too, I think Frosty is due back at HQ today and Titania is due later this week."

The model nodded at her agent and put her lacy bra on. "Dress?"

"Silver, satin so it shimmers." He replied as he grabbed a matte black jacked and pulled it on, covering his equipment from view. "And sapphires for your jewellery, to match your eyes."

Mira giggles and smiles as she claps her hands together. "And that is why I let you see me get dressed, you always give me great fashion advice." Turning to her wardrobe then looking back at him with a devilish smirk she gives her ass a spank.

"Really?" Natsu said with a chuckle. "Spanking yourself for me?"

"Oh come on Natsu~ you should know from all of our sparing lessons that I love roughness, being pinned to the floor or a wall~."

"Yeah, and we are just fighting in those, you know how distracting it is when you know your opponent is getting turned on in a fight?"

"You just love dominating me and taking advantage of me in times of weakness."

Natsu chuckles and shakes his head. "Mira, all we have done is spar, no intercourse, no matter how much you always grind against me in an effort to distract me when I have you in a grapple."

"Oh you love it, don't make it seem like you don't always purposely cop a feel of my tits or ass whenever you get the chance." Said Mira as she straightens up and rummages through her wardrobe for her desired dress.

"More like you shove them into my hands." He argued back playfully.

"No I don't~ don't lie to me you meanie." She giggled as she slid her dress on then put on some sapphire jewellery.

"Almost time for you to leave is it?"

"Yeah, not long until my shoot, I'll be back in time for your mission easily so I'll talk to you at 7:40pm make sure you are in position at the docks by then."

"Will do Mira."

"Bye Sal." She said as she went to her desk and lent down.

"Bye M." He replied as they ended the call.

"Cherry, turn off the hologram and send all the data to my tac-com."

"Yes Agent Salamander."

Sal strapped the tac-com to his left forearm over his jacket sleeve and powered it up, tapping away at it to integrate all the tech based equipment he is using.

"Data transmitted Sir." Cherry announced.

"Good, well I better go get set." Sal said as he double checked everything and made some lunch to go.

* * *

Hargeon City Docks, 7:30pm

Agent Salamander rode into the dockyards on his bike, a paper bag full of fast food sitting between the bike's handlebars and its windshield, he drives down into a tight alleyway and parks his bike out of view, getting off it and placing the helmet on the seat.

"Hopefully I have time to eat before I start."

Giving his gear a once over, he nods in confirmation then grabs the paper bag, looking up the sheer walls of the two warehouses to his left and right. "Better get up somewhere I can have a good view."

Holding the bag securely in one hand he runs up one wall then jumps to the other, grabbing a handrail for the catwalk above him and pulling himself up, resting the bar in the groove of his boots and squatting down before launching himself up higher.

Once he is on the roof he walks over to the side that has a great view of the cruise ship and sits down.

"Burger time." He opens the bag and starts to eat the burger be bought on the way over.

Keeping an eye on the time as he quickly and cleanly eats the burger, fries and drinks the cup of Coke. "Ah that hit the spot."

He cleans his hands and mouth with a wet wipe and starts getting ready, putting on a sub-vocal microphone on his throat and adjusting the strap so it sits comfortably then puts in an earpiece in his right ear and finally places the A.R. contacts onto his eyes.

Tapping away at his tac-com he gets the three pieces of equipment linked to the communication system and makes sure it's all running fine.

COMM: "Mic check"

COMM: "Loud and clear Sal, you all set?"

COMM: "Yeah, time is 7:39pm, want to get started M?"

COMM: "Let's commence the operation."

Sal grins and cracks his knuckles while rolling his shoulders and neck. "Showtime."

* * *

So I hope you all like the first chapter of my new story, first thing I should note is I know that I go between a few names for the characters but while on mission they will be referred to as their code name, so for instance Agent Salamander for Natsu or just Sal for short.

Second thing is just explaining what a sub-vocal mic is so you don't have to google it, saving you the time and effort, basically it is a special mic that picks up the movement of your vocal cords that happens even when you just think words, it's done through a sensor, analyser and transmitter, that's the simple version, if you want to know more then hop over to google, bing or yahoo, whatever you use and give it a read up on, it's quite fascinating.

What this allows is for silent communication between two people, best thing for when you are doing clandestine operations as silence is your best friend, in the story the silent communication will be denoted by "COMM:" before the sentence, I've done this to distinguish the difference between vocal and sub-vocal communication.

Thank you for reading.


	2. Chapter 2

COMM: "Mic check"

COMM: "Loud and clear Sal, you all set?"

COMM: "Yeah, time is 7:39pm, want to get started M?"

COMM: "Let's commence the operation."

Sal grins and cracks his knuckles while rolling his shoulders and neck. "Showtime."

* * *

COMM: "Don't forget to change your hair, we don't want anything that could lead them back to us, and you stand out way to much with that pink spiky hair."

COMM: "I know M, can't have me being found and caught."

He runs his hand through his hair, transforming it to black and slicking it back, going further and changing his eyes to ocean blue.

COMM: "All done M, let's get the show on the road."

COMM: "Move out Agent, remember, non-lethal tactics only, fifth freedom has not been authorised."

M keeps her eyes on the screen in front of her, watching the live feed of Sal's contacts so as to pick up on anything he may miss.

COMM: "I've got two guards on the closest entrance, probably more on the other entrances too." Sal said as he started moving closer to the massive cruise ship, tapping his tac-com and highlighting the security room in blue, possible meeting rooms in yellow, and security cameras in red with their cones of sight being illuminated with pink light.

COMM: "Ignore them, find a secondary means of entrance."

Sal looks up and down the side of the ship as he starts to sneak closer, staying in the shadows.

COMM: "The mooring ropes, I can sneak on-board that way, thankfully it's a moonless night so shadows are plentiful."

He moves to the front of the large ship and hooks a leg around the thick cable, swinging underneath it then hooking his other leg around and uses his arms to work his way up.

COMM: "M are you able to keep an eye on the cameras through the tap, need you to keep an eye out for hostiles."

Turning to watch a second monitor she flicks through the cameras until she finds the one she is after, the one watching the front deck of the ship.

COMM: "You are clear for now Sal, keep moving."

He keeps working his way up the cable, his eyes glued to the hole the cable is fed through as it leads up to the deck, inching closer and watching the highlighted camera swing back and forth.

Chatter and footsteps reaches his ears, causing him to come to a dead stop and press his body close to the cable.

"I heard the boss is meeting some big titty blonde tonight."

"Is she hot?"

"I haven't seen her yet but rumour is she is a 10/10, boss says we'll be paid a lot for her."

"But is she as hot as Mirajane Strauss for that magazine?"

"Oh that's a tough one."

The voices and footsteps get closer to Sal who quickly moves up the cable and brings his legs down from it so he hangs alongside the ship.

COMM: "Sal they are heading to the edge."

COMM: "Gotcha, just going to hang out for a bit before I duck in."

The two guards reach the railing and gaze about the docks below them, looking for any sign of movement.

"Looks all clear."

COMM: "Stay there a bit longer, they are starting to move away, I'll let you know once the camera has panned away."

Sal waits as the footsteps drift away, getting quieter and quieter then brings his legs up around the cable, he then climbs around so he lies on top of the cable with a leg straight down for stability.

COMM: "I'm in position to board."

COMM: "Move on my mark. Three… Two… One… Mark."

The agent quickly stood up on the cable and vaulted over the railing, landing almost silently as the camera's cone of sight came into full few as it points off to his right.

Quietly moving to the wall and pressing against it underneath the camera so he is in a blind spot, quickly running through a few options and routes to take.

A: Follow the two guards to a quite area and take care of them.

B: Avoid all patrols until he gets to the security room.

Choosing option B, Sal slips down the opposite direction to the patrol, staying low and close to the wall.

As he reaches the corner he carefully peeks around it to check for signs of trouble, seeing none he continues down that path and out of the danger of being seen by a camera.

Sal makes his way to the security room, dodging guards and cameras alike as he sneaks through the ship.

"How long are we staying in this ship for?" Comes a voice from within the security room.

"Beats me, the boss said we have almost have a full stock, so probably a few more then we can do the delivery." Replies a second, closer voice.

"Do you know if he plans on using this ship for the delivery?"

"I don't think so, it would be hard to keep all the girls contained, we'd either have to lock them in the staterooms or the engine room, both cases could cause us to lose product."

COMM: "M I have a potential lead on other girls that Doppler has stored."

COMM: "Make them talk, we'll pass on the information to the police."

Sal takes out two spider trackers from his pouch and places them on the floor, he taps his tac-com to activate them and sends them into the room.

Immediately a red silhouette appears against the wall right next to him followed by one a few metres away.

He activates the code breaker in his tac-com and brings it up next to the security card lock beside the door, glancing at the estimated completion time between looking up and down the hallway, patiently waiting for the door to unlock.

Sal reaches behind him and under his jacket, unlatching the clip on the holster for his tranq pistol and sliding the gun out, using one hand to rake the slide and load a round into the chamber then gripping it and readying himself for quick close combat.

The door softly clicks as it becomes unlocked, a small message flashing onto the tac-com's screen to notify the user that it has completed the task.

Standing and moving against the door, Sal focuses on the two red silhouetted hostiles who have turned to look at the door curiously.

Quietly depressing the door handle he sets it on the jar before busting into the room, his left hand finding the gun of the closest guard, wenching it from his grip and throwing it into the hand of the second guard to throw him off balance.

Kicking the door shut as he grabs the guard by the throat and pinning him to the wall, Sal spins around and points the tranq pistol at the other guard as he recovers from the impact.

PSSssh

Sal pulls the trigger on the pistol, sending a dart into the jugular of the guard and quickly knocking him out with the potent liquid contained within.

The pistol cycles with a small magnetic pulse, sending the slide back and collecting a new dart to be chambered as Sal brings the muzzles around and up against the neck of the guard he is holding by the throat.

"I've got some questions for you and you are going to answer them properly." Sal growled out.

"Really, threatening me with a tranq gun? What are you, some kind of pussy bitch?"

Sal pulls him off the wall then slams him back against it with a heavy thud.

"That is the least of your worries pal." Sal said as he put the gun away then gives the guard a dangerous grin.

The guard shakes his head to clear the fog from the impact and coughs again. "Is that so?"

"First question, where is the boss hiding?"

"He ran down to the local pharmacy, had to buy this little blue pill called Viagra for you, just so you can GO FUCK YOURSELF!"

"Wrong answer pal." Sal said as he pulled the guard over to the desk then kneed him in the gut to bend him over, grabbing the back of his head and slamming it into the desk hard, disturbing the mice and keyboards.

"Ouch Fuck, take a joke you fucker."

"Answer the question."

"Fuck you."

Sal throws the guard to the middle of the room and cracks his knuckles with a feral grin. "Ooh I'm going to have a lot of fun with you."

COMM: "Don't get too rough with him Sal, we need him alive and conscious so you can question him."

The guard looks up from the ground in time to see a boot crashing into his face.

Sal picks him up the slams him into a monitor, sending his head through it then pulling him back through then back up so they are face to face. "Feel like answering now?"

"F-fuck off bastard…"

Sal moves over to a door leading into a small storage room within the security room and opens it, sticking the guard's head between the door frame and the door then slamming the door shut on his head a fair few times.

The guard groans as he gets pulled back up to face his attacker. "W-what was the question again?"

"Where. Is. Bora?"

"R-room 526, he is meeting that blonde chick in there soon."

"That wasn't so hard now was it? Now question two, where are the rest of the girls?"

"W-what?"

Sal drops the man and knees him in the ball as he falls down. "The girls you fucks are selling into the slave trade."

"Ow fuck man, why the balls!"

Sal pulls out his Glock and shoots a suppressed sub-sonic bullet right down the crotch seam of the guard's pants, skimming the underwear and having the bullet pass so close to the man's balls that he can feel the heat.

"Answer the question or you'll get much worse than a knee to the balls."

"Oh shit…" The man simpers. "The girls are in a warehouse on the docks, in shipping containers to be loaded onto trucks tomorrow and taken to Bosco."

"What is the warehouse number?"

"For-forty two… warehouse 42."

COMM: "You got that M?"

COMM: "Loud and clear, once you get to room 526 and incapacitate the target then I'll get the Hargeon police to move on the warehouse and then the ship once you have extracted Celeste."

Sal holsters his Glock and pulls out the tranq pistol then fires it at the neck of the beaten guard, knocking him out, once the liquid is completely in the circulatory system of the guard he pulls the darts out of the two bodies and places them into an empty pouch, hiding the bodies in the storage room.

Sal turns and looks up through the floors at the highlighted rooms, tapping his tac-com to focus on room 526 only.

He picks up the casing from the round he fired then puts it into a pouch and turns to the desk, he turns off the recording for the security cameras so even if he is seen from now on, he will not show up on the playback.

COMM: "Moving on the room now."

Sal slips out of the security room and moves up the ship carefully, placing trackers on every guard he comes across on his way to the floor he needs to be.

Once he reaches the right floor he moves down the hallways, approaching the room, poking his head a round the corner he spots a group of four guards outside the room with two more coming down the hallway to the group.

"The girl inside?" Asks one of the two patrolling guards to the four stationed by the door.

"Yeah, turned up not long ago." One of them responded.

"What's she like?"

"Smoking hot, definitely going to get a fat pay check after this lot."

"Ooh that's perfect."

"Keep your voices down, we don't want to spook the girl and have her make a break for it."

"Oh what's she going to do, stand on my foot?"

Tink Tink tink

The six guards look down at a weird disk that landed between them.

"Huh, who threw that!?" One said as they all look around, searching for danger.

Click

The two halves of the disk split open horizontally and it expands up by an inch then hisses as it gushes out clear gas.

"What the fuck…"

Thud, thud, thud, thud, thud, thud

One by one the guards fall to the floor, rendered unconscious by the gas emitted by the non-lethal gas grenade.

After the gas clears Sal moves up to the door, picking up the grenade and snapping it shut then placing it back in the pouch it came from.

COMM: "I've located room 526."

COMM: "Affirmative, remember, we need Doppler alive."

Sal searches the bodies of the guards for a key card but mentally swears when he can't find any.

COMM: "I'm going in via the window, I don't want to spook them when I open the door."

COMM: "Best to go two rooms down and enter through the balcony from there, just to make sure that they don't hear the room next to them."

Sal nods and walks two rooms to his left and uses his tac-com to unlock the card locked door, passing through and out to the balcony, he climbs over the edge so he hangs from the fence, dropping down so his hands are on the floor.

The sound of a door opening and footsteps reaches his ears from the target room as Doppler walks out onto the balcony.

"Fuck me that girl is a lively one, doesn't want to give up." Doppler said as he rubbed one of his thighs, a purple bruise growing underneath his purple pants.

COMM: "I've got eyes on one of the targets." Sal said as he slowly and silently shimmies across the edge of the balconies until he is right under Doppler.

Doppler leans on the railing and looks out at the horizon. "Well, just makes it more fun breaking her."

Pulling himself up quickly and fairly effortlessly, Sal grabs Doppler by the hair and drops back down.

Thunk… Thud.

He slams their head into the metal railing and knocks him out, letting him fall to the floor as Sal climbs up and onto the balcony.

COMM: "Target neutralised."

COMM: "Secure the girl and confirm her identity and condition."

Sal grabs Doppler by the collar of his shirt and drags him back inside, muffled grunts and whines coming from a bound and gagged girl on his right.

He dumps the body on the bed and walks to the girl, noticing her torn clothing and scratched skin with some bruises slowly developing on her exposed skin.

The girl falls silent at the new man in front of her as she looks up at him with a sliver of hope in her eyes.

COMM: "She matches the description, blonde with brown eyes, slim but busty, looks like the height matches too, approximately 165 cm, 5'5", need to check when she is standing though."

COMM: "Make sure to remove her high heels, it will make getting out of there easier and we can get her true height."

Sal slips his tac-com off and holds the rear of it up to her face. "Look at the light."

"Mmph?" The girl looks at him questioningly but complies, looking into a dull light beneath the lens on the tac-com.

COMM: "It's a match Sal, that's our girl, Celeste, prep her for exfiltration."

Sal puts the tac-com back on his arm and unties the woman, removing the tap from her mouth. "Can you move?"

The woman gingerly rises from the chair, rubbing her wrists where rope was tied tightly around. "Somewhat, I'll be fine in a sec. Who are you?"

"Just call me Sal right now."

"That guy, said he was Salamander… That he worked with the FTA, the Fairy Tail Agency…"

"If someone announces that he works for a clandestine agency as a man as infamous in the business as the Salamander is, I'm pretty sure he is lying."

"Then who is he?"

"His name is Bora, a slave trafficker that specialises in females, I assume I don't need to tell you what I mean by that?" Sal said as he walked over to the bed he dumped one of his targets on.

"He was planning on selling me as a sex slave?"

"Yes, by the looks of you, and all of your injuries, it looks like he wanted to test out the merchandise first."

Celeste wobbles as she walks over to the bedside table and takes a pouch with silver and gold keys inside, smiling down at her beloved friends and strapping the pouch around her thigh and draping her torn red dress over it to hide the pouch.

"Yes, he did want that, but I fought him off, he only just tied my legs up then as I started kicking the high heels at him to keep him off me."

Sal grabs the rope and places it on the bed, strips Doppler and ties him down to the bed. "Take your heels off and throw them overboard."

"But these are my favourite pair!"

"You can't run in your current condition while in heels, hell I don't know if you can normally, and I need you to keep up with me if we are to get out of this place safely."

Celeste fumes silently but takes them off and walks out to the balcony.

COMM: "Height matches the description too, no doubt about it." Sal said as he made sure Doppler won't be able to get free by himself.

COMM: "I'll have the police move on the warehouse, they are chomping at the bit to get their operation underway and don't like that we are, and I quote, Stonewalling them."

COMM: "Make sure I can get out of here with Celeste, I don't care if it pisses of the local police."

COMM: "I'll do my best Sal."

"Ok when are we leaving this damn ship?" Celeste asks when she re-enters the room.

"Right now, I took care of all the guards that were right outside the door but this ship is full of them." Sal replied as he walks to the door to the hallway.

"So we just have to stay quiet right?"

"Well we don't have to worry about cameras as I took care of the guys in the security room, but we still have the regular patrols, so yeah, stay quiet"

The blonde nods as she follows the man out of the room, stepping over the still sleeping bodies of the guards.

"This way." Sal said as he starts walking down the hallway, his eyes moving about, scanning the area for threats.

Bang, Bang, Bang

COMM: "Sal! Bad news, the police are moving on the ship, they are trading shots with the hostiles."

Sal grabs Celeste and pulls her down into a shadow. "Fuck, why did you have to where red…" COMM: "Understood, what do you want me to do, the guards are going to be on high alert and the police will probably be trigger happy since they had to wait so long."

Celeste hits him on the arm out of anger and frustration.

COMM: "Damn it, hold tight, I need to let the director know." M said before muting herself and making a call.

"We have to sit still for a moment, the cops are storming the ship and will most likely shoot us if we are seen."

"Why will they shoot us?"

"We are on a ship full of sex traffickers, and while they know there is an operative on board conducting a mission, they will most likely be trigger happy because we made them wait until we were clear, now they have jumped the gun and we are still here."

"Oh…"

COMM: "Agent Salamander, it's the Director, Agent Demon told me of what has occurred, lethal force has been authorised for Doppler's men, but deal with the police without any fatalities, we don't need any backlash from this operation, preferably avoid them as much as possible but if confrontation does occur then use non-lethal tactics." Came an aged male voice, conveying wisdom and authority.

COMM: "Copy that Director, continuing with the mission now." Sal replied as he starts moving through the ship again.

"What's going on?" Celeste asks as she hurries to follow him.

"I've been given updated orders, we are to proceed with the mission but if we come across any of Bora's men then its shoot to kill if we get spotted, police are to be avoided or knocked out."

He bends down and picks up a FN P90 off a sleeping body of a guard along with a belt which has ammo pouches and spare mags for the weapon on it. "Here, do you know how to use one of these?"

"No… not particularly…" She responded.

He puts the belt around her waist and tightens it to fit.

"Put simply, hold it like this." He brings the PDW up to his shoulder and aims down the hallway.

"Detach the mag and replace it like this." He hits the release and pops the mag out of the top then slides it back in and pops it back in place.

"Uh huh." Celeste nods quickly.

"Cock it like this." He cycles the bolt and ejects the round that was in the chamber.

"Safety is here, keep it on A for automatic." He shows her and turns it to safe then to A with his thumb.

"On Auto the trigger is two stage, half pull fires one bullet at a time, full pull fires full auto."

"Ok." She replies as she takes in the information.

"When not in combat take your finger out of the trigger housing and rest it alongside the housing." He turns to the other side and demonstrates it.

"And finally, don't aim it at anything you aren't planning on shooting, when you aren't holding it to your shoulder for firing, keep it to your chest and angled to the ground." He brings it to his chest to show her.

"Got it." The blonde says.

"If you need more ammo then get it from any guard we drop, I've noticed they are all outfitted with P90s, grab the full mags only, you can see the rounds through the semitransparent mag, if it has bullets from one end to the other than grab it, replace any empty mags you have with any full ones you find."

He hands her the gun in his hands then picks up a second, giving it a once over before strapping it to his back and placing extra mags in his belt.

"Let's move out." He pulls out his Glock and starts walking down the hall.

"Coming." Celeste replies.

A few quiet minutes pass for the pair as they work their way down the hall, the only sounds being Sal practically silent footsteps, the soft patter of the feet belonging to the woman beside him, and the sound of distant gunshots from the firefights between the slavers and the police.

"Sal…?" Celeste asks at a normal volume, only for the man to give her a silent shush as he places a finger to his lips.

"Yes, Celeste?" He spoke quietly and got a questioning look from the woman. "Celeste is the code name given to you by my handler and the others back at HQ."

"W-why Celeste?"

Sal crouches down behind a fire wheel cabinet and nods to a space next to him then peeks around the red cabinet. "It's short for Celestial, we know of you and your heritage."

"How, I made sure to keep everything quiet, I even used a fake name."

He looks at her and shakes his head. "We are one of the more well-known agencies in Fiore, but even being well known doesn't limit our ability to work in the shadows, let alone gather intel, it just makes things a little more difficult if things get linked back to our agency."

"So who are you, if you are well known then…" She starts but is cut off quickly.

"I'll answer that in due time, but even if I told you my real name, you wouldn't know who I was, even by my code name, unless you were in the business or are affected by the business, like you have been."

"So if you told me your code name?"

"I have, its Sal, but even then you would only know the name, nothing else, not unless you take the red pill and see how far the rabbit hole goes, little Alice."

"My name isn't Alice…" She said with a huff.

"I know what your name is, that was a reference to a movie that was about a reference to a movie/book."

The sound of shouting and running reaches his trained ears as hostiles approach.

"Incoming, get ready." He said as he moved up to an intersection of two hallways crossing paths, getting onto the right corner facing down the hall, he points to the opposite corner. "Get into cover there."

The blonde in a red dress moves and awkwardly copies his crouched form the best she can, aiming her P90 down the hall.

A group of eight slavers come racing around the corner, moving with purpose as they head to the battle with the police. "This way, we can get behind them and get them in a pincer."

Sal takes a deep breath then slowly releases it as he raises his suppressed pistol, aiming down the hall at the incoming targets.

His perception of time slows as he slips into a deadly focus, zeroing in on his targets' heads and rapidly squeezes the trigger with perfect precision.

Eight 10mm bullets fly out of the barrel one after the other, soaring through the air as the eight accompanying brass cartridges eject out of the pistol, each bullet landing perfectly between the eyes and close to the ridge of the nose.

One by one in quick secession, all eight heads snap back from the impact of the bullets followed by the bodies falling to the floor, limp and lifeless.

"Ok, let's move up." Sal said as he stepped out of cover and lowered the muzzle of his pistol to the floor, glancing over at the blonde woman.

She leans on the wall and shakes, having watched eight people's lives snuffed out in mere moments.

"You're going to need to get used to that if we are going to get out of here alive, we got lucky that I managed to eliminate them before they could get a shot off or we'll have alerted any surrounding slavers to our location." He said as he walked to her and helped her stand up.

"J-just give me a moment please."

"Make it quick, I'd rather not be stuck between slavers and police in a storm of bullets."

Celeste takes a few deep breaths then nods to the agent next to her, telling him that she is ready to continue.

Sal readies his pistol and continues down the hallway, he slips his mag out and checks the guide to see how many rounds he has left before slotting it back in.

"How far do we have to go?" Celeste whispered.

"A fair way, we have to go up and cut through the casino, which gives us a wide open area to sneak through, lots of noise and places to hide, and lots of cover if we get into a firefight."

"Is it safe going that way?"

"I don't know, chances are the slavers have an ambush set up there, let me check in and see what the situation is."

COMM: "Can I get a sit-rep on the casino?"

COMM: "One moment Sal." M responded.

"Up this way." Sal said as he climbed a stairway.

"I'm confused… you said you'd check in but didn't do anything?" Celeste said as she followed her protector.

"I have a non-verbal mic, reads the movement of my larynx when I speak silently. I talked to my handler and am just waiting for her to get back to me."

"Oh ok."

COMM: "I've got some bad news Sal, I'm seeing thirty plus hostiles in the casino, all hiding behind tables and gambling machines, once you get to the right floor, head towards the casino but take your first right, continue down for two junctions and then turn left, you'll come through a side door that they aren't focused on."

COMM: "So if we are careful then we could slip by fine."

COMM: "Give Celeste your black jacket, her red dress stands out too much."

"Ok I've just heard back from her, my hunch was right, we'll have to detour so we don't come from their front. Here put this on." Sal said as he came to a stop, putting the P90 down and taking his jacket off and handing it to her.

"Why?" She asked as she took it from him.

"So you blend in more."

"It's the red dress again isn't it?" She deadpanned as she slipped on the jacket.

"No shit, you stand out like a sore thumb, which is fitting as they are both red." Sal replied sassily as he put his PDW back onto his back and started moving again.

Celeste huffs and follows the spy through the hallways and up to a set of double doors with a large flashy sign. "This must be the casino…"

"What gave it away?" Sal said as he turned to her.

"…" Celeste gave him a blank stare.

"Was it the sign? It was the sign wasn't it?" He spoke as he pointed up at the sign that said Casino.

Celeste sighs and rests her face in a palm. "Can we just go in and get this over with?"

Sal smirks and goes to the door, slowly and quietly opening it as he levels his pistol with the gap.

He slips through the door in a crouch and moves to the nearest cover, watching Celeste slip through after him, her ripped and shortened dress causing her to accidentally flash the man and give him a nice view of her matching red lace thong.

"Where to now?" She asked quietly.

Sal points to the far side of the room, past numerous armed slavers.

"Huh, Hey who opened that door?!" Came a nearby voice.

"What door?" Came another.

"East side, get your guns ready people, looks like we have some target practice!" Shouted a more authoritative voice as the sound of multiple guns getting cocked reached the duo's ears.

"Well shit, looks like the party is about to start." Sal remarked.

"Oh no… I-i forgot to shut the door." Said Celeste.

"Let's bring some firecrackers." Sal said as he pulled a flashbang from a pouch and primed it then arced it over his cover and into the line of sight of the slavers.

BANG!

The grenade goes off with a bright flash of light, a split second later Sal bolts out of cover and sprints for a large pool table, grunting as he forces it up and onto its side, using the thick granite of the table as a bullet shield and taking cover behind it.

Celeste follows quickly, fear evident in her face and eyes as her whole body shakes.

"OPEN FIRE!" Shouts a slaver as a cacophony of gunshots ring out from the other side of the table, followed quickly by harsh thuds of the bullets colliding with the granite.

"Well looks like I don't have to stay quiet anymore." Sal said as he holstered his Glock and took the P90 off his back, prepping it and readying himself for the bloody firefight to come.

* * *

Well, that's chapter two, hope you all like it, if you like the story then give it a follow or favourite, if you like to give some feedback or just want to have your say then drop a review, any and all feedback helps.


	3. Chapter 3

"Let's bring some firecrackers." Sal said as he pulled a flashbang from a pouch and primed it then arced it over his cover and into the line of sight of the slavers.

BANG!

The grenade goes off with a bright flash of light, a split second later Sal bolts out of cover and sprints for a large pool table, grunting as he forces it up and onto its side, using the thick granite of the table as a bullet shield and taking cover behind it.

Celeste follows quickly, fear evident in her face and eyes as her whole body shakes.

"OPEN FIRE!" Shouts a slaver as a cacophony of gunshots ring out from the other side of the table, followed quickly by harsh thuds of the bullets colliding with the granite.

"Well looks like I don't have to stay quiet anymore." Sal said as he holstered his Glock and took the P90 off his back, prepping it and readying himself for the bloody firefight to come.

* * *

Celeste shakes as she stares at the agent beside her. "A-are we going to make it out?"

"Lady if you knew how many missions I've been on, and how little I've failed, you'd be more confident in our situation." Sal said as he brought his P90 around the right hand edge of the pool table, showing as little of himself as possible as he takes aim at the slavers.

"Failed?"

"I don't plan on making this one of them." He replied as he opened fire, trading bullets with the hostiles.

"How many have you failed?" She asks as she starts to feel even more worried for her life.

"Will you focus on our current situation for fucks sake!"

"But… but I haven't used a gun before…" Celeste said as she looks down at the PDW in her hands. "Let alone shot someone."

Sal grumbles and quickly ducks back behind cover as a bullet grazes the wooden side of the table where his head just was a moment ago.

He turns to her and points at the gun in her hands. "Take the business end of that weapon and point it around the cover at those fucks before they get smart and flank us on your side!"

Celeste recoils at the forceful order from the man in black combat gear and shakily glances around her end of the large table.

"I don't care if you don't even hit them, just fire in their direction and make them think twice about coming your way!" He shouts over the loud rapport of gunfire.

Sal peeks back around the corner again and opens fire upon the slavers, keeping them at a distance and behind cover by not being too particular with how accurate he is.

Celeste holds the P90 out round the corner and blind fires it, she squeaks in shock when it recoils and bucks.

"Grasp the weapon firmly and gently squeeze your trigger finger so it fires off short bursts of three rounds, full auto will just burn through mags." Sal threw over his shoulder as his eyes roamed around the room in front of him for targets of opportunity.

"O-ok." She replied as she tightened her grip on the gun and followed his instruction.

Spotting a crystal chandelier hanging above a group of eight or nine slavers, Sal snaps the muzzle up to the suspending cable and fires a quick burst of bullets at it.

The chandelier creaks then shunts down a foot as the cable unfurls from the damage the bullets caused.

A lone crystal falls to the floor and shatters at the feet of the slaver group, the only warning for their impending doom, one of them stops firing and looks up.

"Ooh Fuck!" He shouted as the chandelier comes crashing to the floor on top of the group, killing some and critically injuring others.

The force of the impact causes crystal fragments to fly out like a fragmentation grenade and injure those around the impact site.

"Holy fuck!" Shouted one of the slavers in surprise, they had been grazed by a crystal fragment and were now bleeding from a gash along their right arm.

"These aren't police!" Another shouted in a momentary pause in the firefight.

"No fucking shit…" Muttered Sal as he took the break in fire as an opportunity, slipping out of cover and focusing on his targets.

The slavers stare, shocked, at the man before them, standing out of cover like a man with balls of tungsten carbide as he levels the weapon with them.

COMM: "You really need to tone down the collateral damage Sal…" M said to the agent.

COMM: "I've done worse."

Sal smirked as he precisely aimed and shot six quick shots, downing the targeted slavers before the rest of them could react then ducked back down behind cover.

"Get ready, we are making a break for the exit on the other side of the room, taking the long way around those one-armed-bandits." Sal said to Celeste as he pointed off to his right.

"But… but…" She said weakly, she shook the SMG in her hands uncertainly.

"Just move and shoot, doesn't have to be accurate just needs to keep them in cover so we don't get hit."

Eyeing her uncertain face, he gives her no more time to process the information and sprints out of cover, firing the P90 at the slavers with one hand and flicking tables up with his other hand to provide his companion with more cover.

Slamming into cover behind a gambling machine, he looks back at the blonde and motions her to start moving. "Get your ass in gear and get over here!"

After a moment's hesitation from the blonde, she hurries over to his side, a bullet soaring through her hair and splitting some of it apart.

Sal covers her by firing around the corner of the machine until he gun clicks dry, he pops out the mag and replaces it.

"FRAG OUT!" Shouted a slaver as he pulled the pin from a grenade and threw it.

"Nah fuck that for a joke!" Sal shouted back as he slipped out of cover and sent a round at the grenade, hitting it a couple of feet from the slaver and detonating it in mid-air. "And that is why you don't announce when you throw frags unless its danger close, mother fucker!"

Fragments from the grenade hit some of the grenades on the belts of the surrounding hostiles, severing the safeties and triggering the primer, causing further detonations and blowing apart a few people.

"Move now Celeste, we have a window." Sal said as he sprinted flat out around the backs of the machines, burst firing his P90 at the remnants of the slavers between each machine.

Celeste follows hot on his heels, wanting nothing more than to get out of the death trap called the casino.

As he runs, Sal pulls up another flash bang grenade and primes it, he lets the safety go and counts to three as he runs then flings it up over the machines so it blows up in mid-air, flashing and disorientating the slavers but making his ears ring a bit due to how close it was, even though the machines deflected most of the blast.

Having the path pointed out for her by the agent protecting her, she runs out of the door and hides behind the large wooden double doors.

Sal swings the weapon around onto his back and grabs a heavy poker table, dragging it out to the hallway and closing the doors so he can barricade the doors with the table.

"Are we safe?" Celeste asked, timidly.

"Not until we are off this ship and out of the docklands." Her guardian responded as he set up some sensor traps with knock out gas grenades so if anyone passes through the door then they'll get knocked unconscious.

"How do we get off the ship?"

Sal shrugs and pulls out his Glock again, preferring to take the silent approach since they made it out of the firefight.

"You alright? No wounds?" He asked as he started moving down the hallway.

"I think one just missed my head when I was running, I felt the wind and heard it fly past."

COMM: "M we need a way off this ship that will have us avoid any more surprise parties." Sal said with a nod of acknowledgement to the blonde next to him.

COMM: "You could head down the mooring cable that you came up, head down one of the boarding ramps or even use some fire and jump off the floor you are on."

COMM: "First one would be safest, second means I could come across police and slavers having a shootout and the third one means I'll be one big and obvious target until I land and shut the fire off."

COMM: "Well if you are going with the first one then head to the very front of the floor you are on, jump out of the window and slide down the slope on the front."

COMM: "Copy that M." Sal said then turned to Celeste. "How big are you on slides?"

"Slides?"

"We are going to slide down the front of the ship then make our way down a mooring cable to the docks, then disappear into the shadows."

"Wait What!?"

"Shush, keep your voice down woman, we aren't out of danger yet."

"Why can't we go down the stairs instead?"

"Because we'll come across either cops or more slavers if we go that way."

"Oh…"

"Yeah, and I'd rather not leave a trail of bodies for us to be tracked, so let's get a move on already." Sal replied and broke out in a steady jog.

"O-ok" Celeste said as she followed as best as she could.

The two snuck their way down hallway after hallway as fire fights raged on behind them.

After a tense 15 minutes, they reached the fore of the ship at the floor they are on, Sal presses on a window and finds that it is sealed shut.

"Going to have to blow it open or something…"

"I've got it." Celeste said as she pulled a golden key from the pouch on her thigh.

"No, I don't want to risk any loud crashing noises drawing attention to us." Sal said as he pushed her hand back down gently.

"But…"

"I know you may want to feel like you are being useful but I've got to get us both out of here in one piece and without being tracked. I can't do that if you bust a wall open with that summon."

"but…" She mumbles weakly.

"Once we are out of here and it has calmed down, I'll answer any question you have."

"You didn't have to be a dick about it…"

"At this time, I don't care, my mission is to get you out of here safely, I'm stuck between a rock and a hard place, slavers on one side and cops on the other." He replies as he takes his right glove off, holding out a finger and creating a short jet of fire from the tip of it and slowly melting around the edge of the glass.

"You're a mage?" Celeste asks.

"Yes."

"What else do you know aside from fire magic?" She asked curiously.

"Can't say here."

"Why?"

"Because we still are not safe."

"Oh right…"

The sound of a helicopter reaches Sal's ears and forcing him to press against the wall beside the window and motioning to the other side for Celeste.

"What is that?"

"Police heli, will make things a lot harder, they would have infrared night vision cameras on that bird so they'll see us as clear as daylight."

"Oh."

Sal carefully checks out the window every half minute until he is sure that the danger has passed then gets back to work on the window.

Once the window comes free, he pulls it into the ship and sticks his head out to see how far down they have to go.

"I'll have to carry you down that drop, I don't think you'll be good to walk after it if I let you go down yourself."

Celeste huffs and crosses her arms under her bust. "Why don't you think I will be fine?"

"Many reasons, but now is not the time for chatter." Sal said then quickly brought his head back into the hallway, he picks up the blonde and moves out the window.

"I didn't consent to this~!"

"Shut up and hold on, this is going to be a fast one."

Celeste grips the agent as he breaks out in a controlled run down the slope of the front of the ship.

She barely holds in a scream as the wind whips her hair around along with her torn dress.

Sal runs down the slope until he reaches the bottom, bending his legs as he lands to cushion the impact before setting the woman down. "Ok let's move to the cable that I came up."

"Can I please have a second…?" She asks as she bends, placing her hands on her knees

"No time and it's also too dangerous here, we are out in the open and can be seen and shot at by a lot of directions here."

"Please?" She asks as she looks up at him while trying to calm her nerves.

He sighs and gives her a wave. "Ten seconds, then we have to move."

Sal swings the P90 back around and holds it ready for combat as he looked around and kept an eye out for further danger.

COMM: "M is there any chance on tapping into the camera on that heli, I need to know when to get into cover."

COMM: "I'll check that for you, will be a tougher nut to crack than the ship's security system."

COMM: "Thanks M." Sal replied as he checked the time on his watch. "Time's up, time to move."

"Fine, fine…" Celeste said as she straightened up and walked to him.

Sal puts the weapon on his back again and picks her up as he heads to the mooring cable.

"Again?" She complains.

"We have to get down onto the docks as soon as possible so we can slip away through the docklands, so I'm going to run down the cable."

"What are you, some kind of ninja?"

"I was trained in many things." Sal replied with a smirk going from ear to ear.

Breaking out into a run, he moves across the deck rapidly and vaults the railing, landing on the cable and causing it to bounce and twang.

"Steady…" He says as he shifts Celeste about like a balance pole for tight rope walkers.

"Oi don't use me like this."

"Would you prefer that I use you some other way?" Said Sal with a raised eyebrow.

"Shut up and move…"

Sal runs down the cable, timing his steps so the cable doesn't fling him off or his foot misses the cable with the bouncing.

COMM: "Bad news Sal, the hack will take longer than expected so you'll have to go without an eye on the eye in the sky."

"Shit…"

"What's wrong?" Celeste asked, slightly panicked.

"I asked for a tap on that police camera on the helicopter, it will take too long and we'll probably be detected before the hack works."

"Oh…"

Sal leaps off then end of the cable onto the dock and sprints across the open ground for the stack of shipping containers nearby.

"You can put me down now."

"In a sec." Sal replied as he broke past the threshold of the containers and deemed it safe enough, he puts her back on her feet and watches her wobble about.

"Where to now?" Celeste asks as she regains her balance.

"My bike, but it is halfway across the docks, but at least we don't have to worry about the slavers now, only cops."

"Is that really any better?"

"Well hopefully they won't shoot at first sight down here, best we leave the P90s here, we don't want to give them cause to shoot us."

"Ok." Celeste replies as she places the gun and ammo belt down on the ground, copying Sal's movements.

"I'll need my jacket back now, I have to cover my own guns and equipment."

She nods and slips of the matte black jacket and holds it out for him to take.

"Thanks, now hopefully if we get spotted they won't see any weapons on us and try to shoot us, but who knows, we may get a trigger happy cop." Sal said as he took the jacket and swung it around his body, sliding his arms in as it moves about him.

"Which way?"

"Follow me, and keep an ear out for that helicopter, if it sounds like it's coming closer then let me know." He replied and looked around for boys in blue then started moving up the docks.

"What are the chances of being found by the cops? And is it really a bad thing?" She asked after a few minutes.

"Depends on if they are patrolling around the docks or not, and it could be bad, one of us could be shot."

"But what are the chances of being shot?"

"By the cops? Depends on who is behind the gun, I've been shot at a lot by them."

"Oh ok, hey it sounds like the helicopter is coming."

"Yeah it might make a pass, hopefully it won't see us between these containers." He replies as he keeps walking, pausing at the end of the containers and taking a look out to the warehouses.

"What do you see?"

"No cops yet, we might have to make a move soon, maybe risk being seen by the heli if it means we get to our extraction faster and get out of here."

He waits a minute for the helicopter to fly over their heads then runs for the warehouses, moving to the rear end of them so to avoid any police patrolling the fronts.

"How much further do we have to go?"

"About half a dozen buildings, I parked between two of them."

"Ok."

After a few minutes of walking, the two reach the gap between the 5th and 6th warehouse as a pair of polices officers turn the corner.

"FREEZE!" Shouts on of them as they both aim their pistols at Sal and Celeste.

"Woah, cool your jets." Said Sal as he came to a stop and put his hands up beside his head.

"Why are you two out here, there is a police operation going on."

"We were enjoying a date night out on the edge of the docks, but when we heard gunfire we decided it wasn't the best idea staying here." Sal replied calmly.

"Is that so… why is this woman's dress torn?" Asked the second officer.

"Sorry, she likes it rough, we probably got a bit too carried away."

Celeste flushes red and looks down in embarrassment at her red dress.

The two officers do a double take and lower their pistols halfway, one of them speaks up. "Well we'll have to call it in anyway, just wait there."

Sal and Celeste keep their hands up and wait as one of the officers grabs their radio and brings it up to their mouth. "Control we have two people here, a man and a woman, they claim to be having a date night at the docks and tried to leave the area when the operation started."

"We have cordoned off the entire docks and did a full sweep of the area, so unless they had a little love nest hidden away, they're lying, check them for weapons." The woman on the radio replied.

"Sorry, rules are rules." Said the officer as she put the radio back on her belt and moved forwards to Sal. "I'm going to check you first as you could be hiding something under that jacket."

"Fine by me." Sal said as he carefully watched her.

The officer reaches out and starts giving him a pat down, feeling something in his jacket she pulls it open and comes to a dead stop as she sees all the weapons and equipment. "Shit…"

Sal strikes her forehead and sternum with a simultaneous palm strike, knocking her back and off balance while also stunning her momentarily.

He spins her around and draws his Glock before wrapping an arm around the neck of the officer and aims at the second, using her as a human shield.

"What the fuck!?" The male officer shouts at no one in particular as the situation just got flipped on its head.

"Shut up and don't make any brash decisions, I'm under orders to use neutralise anyone that stands in the way of my mission so I won't hesitate to shoot either of you." Sal spoke calmly to the two police officers.

"Who are you?" Asked the officer he is holding hostage as a shield.

Sal reaches down to her belt and grabs the radio from it then brings it back up to his mouth. "This is Agent Salamander, your two officers intercepted me and my charge out back of the warehouses as we were about to exfiltrate, call them off."

"How dare you…" Said the officer as he stood a few meters away from Sal with his pistol aimed at them.

"Cool it pal, wouldn't want to hit this woman here." Sal replied as he tightened the arm around the officer's neck.

The police helicopter flew around and hovered over the water to their right, the camera pointed at them.

Sal glanced at the heli and activated the radio again. "We gave you Bora, remember the deal, it won't take us much to take him back if you break the deal."

"I know." Came the female voice through the radio. "Let them past you two, we don't want any trouble with his agency."

Sal waits until the cop lowers his pistol and holsters it before letting his shield go, he hands her the radio back and holsters his own pistol. "Any longer and your friend over there might have opened fire by the looks of it, I'd get a new partner if I were you."

As he starts walking down the waterfront again, the male cop redraws his pistol and aims it at the agent. "You think I'm just going to let you walk?"

"Go fuck yourself pal." Sal said as he roundhouse kicks the raised pistol, sending it flying out of the grip of the officer, then he plants his boot to the chest of the cop and kicks him into the wall of the warehouse.

"Raise your gun on me after being ordered to stand down again and you'll get much worse than that." He said as he motioned Celeste to follow him to his bike.

"Wait, you're Agent Salamander? The one that Bora was impersonating?" Celeste asks as she stays hot on his heels.

"Yes, it is part of the reason I was selected for this mission, you see Bora had been tarnishing my reputation, being sloppy and unprofessional among other things."

"But he was using fire type magic…"

"And that is all we have in common, and even that is stretching it, I use a unique fire magic, hence why I earned the name Salamander, a lizard that breathes fire, but that isn't the origins of my magic."

"What is?"

"That's classified." Sal said as he looked over his shoulder. "My bike is down here."

"Classified? Why would it be classified?"

"Because it's not something someone can just learn." He replied as he ran his hand through his hair, changing it back to its natural pink colour and putting on his motorcycle helmet, he requips a second one and holds it out to her. "Here."

"Thanks?" Celeste said as she put it on. "It fits perfectly, whose is this?"

"It's a spare I keep around if I need to take someone on my bike, seems like you are the same size as my handler and her sister."

"Why them?"

"Well M, Agent Demon, likes to go fast, she is my handler, her sister is Agent Chimera and I think she just likes to hold on to me tightly when we go for rides, well actually they both do."

"Oh."

Sal nods and gets onto his bike, starting it and motioning her to get on behind him.

She gets on behind him and holds onto him as he takes off and drives out of the docklands and heads for his safe house in the city.

COMM: "VIP secured and on the way to the safe house."

COMM: "Copy that Sal, nice handling of the police back there."

COMM: "Thanks, I was lucky that one of those cops didn't expect to find a kitted out agent and froze up when she saw all the gear."

COMM: "Imagine what it would be like if she saw you when you weren't in incognito clothes."

COMM: "Yeah yeah, so any new developments?"

COMM: "They found Bora, naked and tied up on the bed, guess they weren't expecting him to be gifted to them in a neatly tied package."

Sal chuckles to himself as he drives but a voice that isn't M's comes over his comms.

COMM: "Agent Salamander, this is the Director, bring Celeste straight to HQ."

COMM: "But sir, what about my stuff at the safe house."

COMM: "We'll send a runner to pick them up and be delivered to your apartment, just worry about getting her here."

COMM: "Copy that Director, I'm changing course and coming home."

Sal hits the brakes and flings the bike around a tight corner, heading for the highway to Magnolia instead of the safe house in Hargeon.

"Where are we going?" Celeste asks.

"Back to headquarters. I got ordered to take you there by the director of my agency."

"Why?"

"I don't know, but you better get comfortable, it's a long drive."

* * *

**Well this concludes the third chapter and Agent Salamander's mission in Hargeon, hope you have liked this chapter, feel free to follow/favourite and if you have any feedback then review.**

**See you all next time.**


	4. Chapter 4

COMM: "Copy that Director, I'm changing course and coming home."

Sal hits the brakes and flings the bike around a tight corner, heading for the highway to Magnolia instead of the safe house in Hargeon.

"Where are we going?" Celeste asks.

"Back to headquarters. I got ordered to take you there by the director of my agency."

"Why?"

"I don't know, but you better get comfortable, it's a long drive."

* * *

**1 hour Later, Emerald Highway**

Sal drove his bike down the highway, doing the speed limit so to not draw attention to them.

"How much further?" Celeste asks.

"A few hours still, I did say it would be a long drive."

"But why couldn't we take a car instead?"

"Bikes are more agile and smaller than cars so they can slip through gaps that cars can't." Replied Sal.

COMM: "Sal we have a problem."

COMM: "What is it M?"

COMM: "We have received reports of a few black sedans speeding down the highway, they came from Hargeon."

COMM: "What's your take on it?"

COMM: "Possible hostiles that are looking to reclaim their prized product, we are moving a drone into position so we can get some eyes on them."

COMM: "How long until I can expect to see them?"

COMM: "We are unsure at the time, just be ready, once I know more I'll get back to you."

Sal sighs and glances at one of the mirrors. "We might be in a spot of trouble."

"Huh?" Celeste asks.

"My handler radioed me, we have some black sedans racing after us, or we think they are after us."

"Wait what!?" She shouted at him.

"Yeah, just waiting on more info before we jump to conclusions."

"Oh god, why can't this nightmare be over and done with…" Complained Celeste.

"No rest for the wicked you know."

After a few minutes Sal's comms come alive with news from Agent Demon.

COMM: "Sal I have some news for you, not the good kind either, we did a frequency sweep and picked up on the radio band that those guys behind you are using."

COMM: "What is being said?"

COMM: "It seems after your little foray in the casino, word has got out that one of the girls slipped the police net and is heading down the highway, those cars are after you."

COMM: "Well shit."

COMM: "But wait Sal, there's more! Not only are there cars coming after you, there is even some motorbikes too!" M said in a mock impression of a TV ad. "We have the drone above them and they are gaining on you quickly, they'll come into view in a few seconds maybe."

COMM: "Well Shit!"

COMM: "We have sent Agents Eastwood and Osprey to assist you and pick you up, they'll be in a V-22 Osprey so be ready."

Sal sits upright and daringly starts pulling off his jacket. "Celeste, put this on quickly!"

"Keep your fucking hands on the bike!" She yells in shock before taking the jacket and hastily putting it on.

**CRACK**

A bullet snaps past them, coming from behind as the roars of multiple bikes approach them.

"Ah shit they are on us." Said Sal as he pulled free his Glock from its holster.

"What The Fuck!?" Celeste shouts.

COMM: "Seems like they found us M."

COMM: "Give them hell Sal, backup is on it's way."

Sal swerves in and out of multiple lanes of traffic as he manoeuvres the bike to avoid the bullets as they hit and ricochet off the road.

He turns around and fires a few quick shots back at the pursuers, getting a lucky hit on a driver on one of the bikes and causing them and their passenger to come crashing off.

"Shit shit shit!" Celeste panics.

"Fuck it!" Sal shouts and opens the throttle wide and accelerates away.

One of the thugs fires a burst of bullets at the bike as it starts to pull away rapidly, one of the bullets scoring a lucky hit on Celeste's lower back.

"Ouch Fuck! Sal I just got shot!" She cries out in pain.

"Relax, the jacket has cutting edge bullet resistant materials woven into it, you won't have a bullet in you, but it will still hurt like a mother fucker."

Celeste whimpers and checks herself under the jacket, she feels no warm liquid that would indicate bleeding, only a very painful spot where the bullet impacted. "That is going to bruise badly isn't it?!"

"Yes it will, but you'll survive." Sal remarked as he took some more pot shots back at the motorbikes, hitting another driver and popping the tyre of a second bike.

COMM: "Eastwood, Osprey! What is your ETA!?" Sal shouted.

COMM: "Estimated time of arrival is five minutes Salamander, hang in there." Came a female voice that belonged to Agent Osprey.

COMM: "Make it quicker, we have civilians stuck in the crossfire and while I know I won't hit them, these pricks have already grazed some cars!"

Sal fired the last round in his pistol's mag at the thugs behind him, the bullet went low and slammed into the rear tyre of the last motorbike chasing them, leaving only cars hot on their tail.

"Whelp, nothing I can do about those cars except for out run them…" Sal said as he holstered his pistol and focused on driving.

The minutes ticked by quickly as the duo managed to stay just far enough ahead of the cars so they won't get a good hit on the two.

A black twin rotor aircraft popped out from behind a mountain and approached the pair at high speed from the direction of Magnolia.

COMM: "Hold onto your horses Osprey! Thing are about to get a bit rough!" Shouted the voice of the gun slinging agent known as Eastwood.

COMM: "I'm strapped in and ready." Replied Osprey.

The aircraft's engine pods rotated to vertical as it was wrenched around in a tight turn to follow the same path as the agent on the bike.

The rear hatch opens up as the engine pods rotate forward again, revealing a green haired woman buckled into a seat.

She gets out and with a quick and soft glow she brings forth a Desert Tech HTI anti-material rifle from her requip space.

"It's show time ladies and gentlemen." She said as she took a knee in the helicopter and aimed her rifle down at the hostile cars.

Sal zig zagged his bike back and forth throughout the lanes, dodging the bullets fired at him as a loud crack rings out, coming from the sniper in front of him.

The large bullet sails past him and crashes into the engine block of the closest slaver vehicle, destroying the engine and causing it to slow down to a dead stop, taking it out of the chase.

"That's one, now for the rest of them." Sal said with a glance in his mirrors.

Celeste looks over her shoulder fearfully at her would-be kidnappers. "Can we please get out of here!"

"Soon, once we are clear." He replied.

Bullets start bouncing off the metal of the aircraft as the slavers open fire on the Osprey, trying to get it to retreat.

COMM: "Osprey, get those bastards off my tail, I'd rather not turn into swiss cheese out here!" Eastwood called out.

COMM: "Do you want to be the one firing the sniper rifle from a fast moving helicopter a few hundred metres into the engine block of a moving car that is swerving about and slowing down then speeding back up?!"

COMM: "I'd rather fly."

COMM: "That's what I thought. Sal how about you try and ramp your bike up into here?"

COMM: "Off what, the guard rails!?" Sal replies as he started to speed up to close the gap between him and the V-22.

COMM: "Think of something quick, there is a tunnel coming up." Eastwood informed them.

Sal grumbles to himself as his eyes dart around the road, searching for something he can use to board the moving helicopter that loomed above him.

COMM: "This better not fucking damage my bike!"

COMM: "Just get your arse up here pal, before we have to bug out to avoid the mountain and you get stuck in a tunnel with those arseholes." Eastwood replied.

A low growl emanated from Sal's throat, which was picked up by the mic, as he took another visual sweep of the road ahead, he spots a car transport truck and makes a bee line for it, racing out from under the Osprey.

COMM: "Get ahead of me and get ready, I'm going to come up off this truck and you better be there to catch me Al!" Sal shouted down his mic.

Agent Eastwood pushed the throttle forward to get out in front of the bike and get into position for his fellow agent.

"What are you thinking!?" Celeste shouts in Sal's ear as he rapidly approaches the truck.

"Just hold tight." He replied smoothly as he shifted his weight and brings up the front tyre off the road.

"You're Insane!"

Sal stays silent as his bike came into contact with the truck's ramped body, keeping the momentum and throttle high he rockets up the back of the truck and launches up into the air, deaf to the screams of the terrified woman clinging to him for dear life.

"OH MY FUCKING GOD!" She shouted as she closed her eyes and held the agent in front of her with an iron grip.

"Come on Sal, just a little bit further." Said the green haired sniper as she stepped aside in the cabin of the Osprey to give him room.

"WE'RE NOT GOING TO MAKE IT!" Celeste shouts at the top of her lungs as the bike slowly started to drop out of the sky.

"We'll make it." Sal replied calmly.

The bike passed through the threshold of the rear door with the rear tyre only just hitting the edge of the door before it gets traction and the bike moves into the cabin.

Agent Osprey smashes her fist against a button by the rear section, closing the rear hatch and giving the occupants safety from the bullets still flying out from the cars.

COMM: "We're on board! Get us out of here Al!" Sal shouted as he shut off his bike and removed his helmet.

"Damn Natsu, that was some damn fine driving." The sniper said to the pinkette.

"Who is Natsu?" Asked the blonde shakily as she too took her helmet off.

"That would be me, and thanks Bisca, you and Alzack are life savers." Natsu said as he let the woman behind him off the bike. "You might want to buckle her into a seat."

Bisca requipped away her rifle and helped the shaken up woman to a seat. "What's your name luv?"

"L-lucy." She responds.

"Well Lucy, just sit down here and try to relax, you are safe now." Bisca said as she placed the blonde into a seat and strapped her in.

Natsu rolled his bike to a wall and tied it down. "Yeah, now it is just a short flight to home and I get to wind down."

"I bet Mira would definitely get in on some of that "wind down" time you'll be having." Bisca said as she turned to the man.

"Who knows, I might just take her up on that this time." He replied.

COMM: A squeal of delight comes through the mic, followed by Mira's voice. "YES! Fucking finally!"

"Ah, I forgot I had the mic live…" Natsu said as he slapped his hand to his face.

Bisca chuckled and turned back to Lucy. "Do you mind if I check you for injuries or do you want to wait until we get back to have our doctor look at you?"

"It's probably for the best if I get checked right now, I did just see my life flash before my eyes for the umpteenth time tonight."

"Well since you two are going to get naked and give each other a once over, I'm going to go up to the cockpit." Natsu said cheekily over his shoulder as he walked up to the front of the helicopter.

"In your dreams Natsu." Bisca said with a laugh while Lucy sat there with a red face.

"A man can only hope Bisca." He replied with a grin before giving the two some privacy.

"Who knows, knowing Mira and Lisanna, you may get a two for one some night!" Bisca calls out to his disappearing form.

She laughs heartily as the last thing she sees of him is a fiery middle finger pop up around the corner of the door. "Ok luv, hop up and drop the dress, you can put it back on in a sec."

Lucy slowly stands and shrugs off the jacket then slowly removes the dress, she stands before the green haired woman in nothing but her panties.

The sniper inspects the blonde, checking for any finger shaped bruises, scraps and or cuts, she checks between her legs and under her arms as she moves about her, spotting a growing bruise on Lucy's back. "Yeah… that looks like it hurts, that'll last a little while but you'll be fine, at least it's only a bruise and not a bullet wound."

"That's what Sal, Natsu? Said when I got hit…"

"Yeah Agent Salamander's name is Natsu, mine is Bisca, I'm Agent Osprey, and the man flying the plane is Alzack who is known as Agent Eastwood, you are all fine, nothing bad so you can get dressed again and buckle back up."

The blonde woman slips her dress back on and gets comfortable in the seat again. "Why Osprey and Eastwood?"

"Well I'm a sniper, I've never missed a shot in my life, not since I started shooting as a little girl."

"So Osprey after the bird that never misses its target?" Lucy asks.

"Correct, as for Al's name, Eastwood, well once you see him you'll know why if you watch Wild West movies." Bisca said as she sat down next to the woman.

"Wild West movies? Like cowboys?"

"Mhm, now relax luv, it's going to be a short while but we'll be on the ground again before you know it."

"I think I'm going to try and sleep… it's been a long night." Lucy said before curling up on the seat and closing her eyes.

"Whatever helps." Bisca replies as she watches the blonde fall asleep.

* * *

**Magnolia, 4:16am**

Natsu looked out at the sprawling city of Magnolia, gazing at the towering skyscrapers and blocks of suburban homes that make up his home as lights glitter below them.

"Ah it's good to be back." He said.

"You were gone a couple days man, you're homesick already?" Alzack joked with a gentle elbow jab to Natsu's side.

"Yeah well I never got much time to wind down after the previous mission before Mira gave me this one."

"How long was it?"

"Half a week at best, spent the first two days just relaxing at home, catching up on some shows and videos online."

"How's Happy?"

"He missed me, first thing he did when I came back was show me what he had learnt from Mira."

"There is a joke there to be made somewhere, what did he show you?"

"Some transformation magic, nothing major but I have a feeling he was holding back until he has more time to show me, he turned his head into mine… it was weird but it was funny."

"Well it's good that he is practicing things other than that magic that gives him wings." Alzack said as he brought the helicopter between to skyscrapers and started flying to the Fairy Tail Agency Head Quarters.

"Control, this is Agent Salamander in Kilo-Two-Six, requesting permission to land." Natsu said through the Osprey's radio.

"This is Control, Kilo Two Six you are cleared for landing, please head to Pad Four. Welcome home Agents." Replied a female voice over the radio.

Natsu got up out of his chair and clapped a hand onto Alzack's shoulder. "You heard the lady Al, take us in."

"You heading back to check on the chicks?"

"Yeah, Lucy is still my mission until I hand her over at HQ, so I have to make sure she is alright."

"Alright then, I'll let you all know when we are about to land."

Natsu nods and heads to the cabin, removing the contacts, mic and ear pieces and placing them in their pouches while he passes through the doorway. "You girls doing ok?"

Bisca looks up and tilts her head at the blonde. "She fell asleep not long after you went to the cockpit, I gave her a once over and the only marks she has on her is some wear and tear from battle and a bruise on her back from being shot. Lucky you gave her your jacket."

Natsu nods as he walks to Lucy and checks her pulse, finding it at a slow and even pace, showing that she is sleeping peacefully. "Well I guess it's time to wake her up."

He gently shakes her by the shoulders until she stirs and looks around groggily. "W-wha? Whats going on?"

"Relax Lucy, we are just about to land so I decided to wake you up." Said Natsu, softly, as he clicked his fingers in front of her to get her attention.

"Oh." She replied and slowly got out of her seat.

"Yeah luv, once we get there someone will find you a place to sleep until the morning." Bisca said as she stood up and when to the rear hatch.

"It'll probably be Mira, she said she'll meet us at the pad."

"Why does that name sound familiar?" Lucy asked.

Natsu and Bisca shared a smirk with each other as Alzack called out from the front of the helicopter. "Alright guys and girls, less than thirty seconds till touch down, get ready."

The Osprey descended then landed gracefully on the pad and Alzack started the shutdown procedure as the pad started to be taken down underground.

"Hit the hatch." Natsu said to Bisca who pressed the button with her fist as Lucy walked up next to the pinkette.

"Why do I feel like I'm still going down?"

"Because we are, we are going underground." Said the Pinkette as the hatch lowered and revealed a beehive of activity that was the HQ.

"Woah…" Lucy gasped in awe.

The landing pad reached the bottom and revealed a waiting, stunningly beautiful, white haired woman in tight black leather pants, leather combat boots, a red tube top and a black leather jacket.

"Hello Mira, how has your night been?" Natsu asked as rolled his bike down the ramp and escorted a stunned Lucy.

"Stressful, you know the usual for nights like this." She replied before glancing around and calling out to the surrounding people "Oi! Can Someone Take Agent Salamander's Bike To His Apartment!"

A guy with dark purple hair and in his late teens ran over to the group. "I can do it!"

"Thanks Romeo." Natsu said to the young man as he handed over the bike.

"Can I drive it over there?" Romeo asked the older man eagerly.

"Not this time kiddo, I think it needs a break from being driven, I just jumped it off the back of a transport truck into the bird behind me."

"That so fucking cool!"

"Watch your language luv, wouldn't want your old man to hear you swearing to your idol." Bisca said jokingly.

"Ah he wouldn't care all that much." Romeo replied as he rolled the bike away happily.

"He is going to drive it." Said Mira as she moved to stand beside Natsu.

"Yeah, I know, but if he crashes it then he'll be in deep shit."

"Hey luv, I'm going to cash it in for the night." Bisca said to the group and waved as she walked off.

"No worries, thanks for the help Bisca, you too Alzack." Replied the Pinkette.

"Of course, we have to help out family when they need it, I'm going to have a drink over at the bar then hit the hay, Cya pal." Alzack said as he left in a different direction.

"Suddenly his name all makes sense… Eastwood." Lucy said as she looked at the retreating man.

"Anyway, come with me you two, got to see the Director before I take you to your temporary accommodation Lucy." Mira said as she led the way for the group.

Lucy leaned over and looked up at the man next to her and whispered. "Natsu, is Mira the same Mira as Mirajane Strauss, the famous model?"

He nods as his eyes stay glued to the sashaying figure in front of him. "Yeah that's her, the one and only Mirajane Strauss."

Lucy's jaw drops at the revelation as it leaves her stunned and at a lack for words, dumbfounded that such a renowned model also worked for the same agency as the man who saved her.

Looking like a stunned mullet, she loses track of how far they have walked and nearly walks into the white haired woman who stopped to knock on a door.

"Director Makarov, Natsu has arrived with the VIP." The woman called through the door.

The door opened to reveal a short, old man who looked up at the trio. "Ah good, Agents you can go relax and get some rest, you have earned it, Miss Lucy come into my office, I'd like to have a chat with you."

Lucy looked around at the two agents with her. "I thought Mira would be taking me to the place I'll be staying?"

"I'll have Lisanna, Mira's younger sister escort you since Mira will need some rest after this long night of work." The old man replied.

Mira gently pushes the blonde into the room and waits for the door to close, once it did she turned to the other agent. "Drinks at the bar?"

"Like always Mira." Natsu replies and led the way to the in house bar.

"Bourbon?" Mira asked the male as they reached the bar.

"Yes."

"Ok, find us a seat, something comfy." She said before turning and heading to the bar.

Natsu walked over to a leather couch and sat down on it, gazing around at the dim room with a dance floor, flashing lights and loud music.

Mira comes back with a glass of bourbon for him and a glass of gin for herself. "Ooh comfy looking couch."

She hands over his glass then purposely sits on his lap instead of the couch and sips at her drink. "Don't mind me Natsu."

Natsu shakes his head in amusement and takes a sip of his drink. "I'm guessing you are planning on coming back to mine?"

"Yes, and there is nothing you can do to stop me." Mira said cheekily as she looked over her shoulder at the pinkette.

"Hopefully Romeo hasn't gone for a joyride on my bike."

"Well we both know that he most likely has, just as long as he got it back in one piece."

Natsu nods and keeps drinking until Mira pulls him to the dance floor and starts dancing with him.

Mira sways her body and swings her hips to the beat, dancing seductively as she looks up at the pink haired man through her eyelashes.

Natsu moved closer and pressed against the deadly model, beginning to run his hands along her sides, up her arms and gently enclosing a hand around her throat.

A soft gasp escapes Mira's lips as she shivers with excitement, she starts to bump and grind her ass against Natsu's hips.

Natsu's hands willingly explore Mira's body, running over her fine curves and soft skin, they reach her breasts and he gives her a little squeeze.

"Oooh." Mira lets out a soft moan, her body seeking his touch and revelling in the pleasure received by the squeezing hands.

One of Natsu's hands sneaks its way down her stomach and down around her thighs, teasingly brushing against the top of her legs as he caresses her thighs.

"Natsu~ we need to find a room quickly before I pounce on you and ravage you." Mira said with a purr as she turned to face the pinkette and gave him a heated gaze while admiring his body.

"Ok let's go back to mine." He said as he gently pulled her out of the bar and down the hallways.

Mira giggles and follows him excitedly, looking forward to the activities they are about to partake in.

The two lustful agents reach an omnidirectional elevator that will take them to the housing section of the HQ and pile into it, Mira swings around and wraps her arms around Natsu's neck, pulling him inside and putting her back against the wall beside the buttons, she closes the gap between them and hungrily kisses the pinkette.

Natsu groans quietly into her mouth as she wraps her legs around his waist and grinds her hips against his in need, he reaches out and hits the buttons that will take them closest to his place and kisses the woman back with an equally passionate hunger.

"I need you right now Natsu~." Mira purrs as she brings her lips to Natsu's neck, gently biting and sucking her way up and down it on both sides.

He looks down at her playfully and grins. "Now I'm just going to make you wait until we get to bed before giving it to you."

"But Natsu~ you should feel me, if we leave it any longer than I'll ruin my leather pants."

"Is that an invitation to pull them off you or stick a hand down there?" He said followed by a kiss on her lips.

"Both, now take me!" Mira said hotly just as the elevator dinged open.

Having decided to make her wait, Natsu leaves the elevator with her and heads to his apartment, punching in the code for the door lock and heading inside all while keeping her locked in a passionate kiss.

"Kitchen table Natsu, bend me over your kitchen table!"

"Yes ma'am." He replied coolly with a sexy grin as he kicked the door shut behind him and went to his kitchen.

Mira jumps down off him and sashays to the table, she bend over and presents her tight leather clad ass for the horny man and gave it a wiggle as she looked back over her shoulder, eyes aflame with lustful desire.

"You know how I like it mister, now give it to me."

"That I do." Said the pinkette as he took long strides over to the sexy model, he brings a hand up and spanks one of her ass cheeks.

"Oooh, another!" She said as she wiggled and groaned with pleasure.

Natsu gave her ass another spank, this time on the other cheek, making Mira lay her upper body on the table while keeping her eyes on his.

"God yes~."

As he kept spanking the woman he reached around with his other hand and started to undo her leather pants.

"Planning on finally unwrapping your gift for a job well done~?" Mira asked playfully as she raised her hips higher and threw her leather jacket off in a random direction.

"Damn right I am." He said as he pulled the pants down over her ass and to her thighs, greeted with the sight of her bare and soaked pussy, he blinks then grins at her.

"Oh I had this very thing in mind when I got dressed on your way back in that Osprey, no bra or panties Mister Agent~." Said the white haired model, playfully and lustfully as she arched her back and wiggled her ass at him.

Natsu spanks her bare ass causing her to moan then he removes his jacket and mission equipment and places them over a kitchen table chair.

"Shirt off, slowly." Mira demands as she bumps and grinds against his pants.

Pulling off his shirt slowly as he chuckles, he reveals his strong, fit and toned body slowly to the horny woman. "Like this?"

"Yes~." She groans as she grinds hard against his clothed hard cock.

The pinkette whips it aside and flings it across the room then unzips his pants and pushes them down with his boxers.

"Aaah there's the big guy I always feel in hand-to-hand training, you have no idea what that does to me when we spar."

"It doesn't help that you always grind against it whenever you get the chance." He said as he snaked his hands up her body and pulled her tube top off. "And there are the boobs that you always make me grab."

"Maybe you should do it now~." She said then moans deeply as she ground her pussy along his cock and he grabbed her breasts so he can roughly knead them.

As he grinds against her he grins down at her. "I'm tossing up between teasing you for a while or just putting it in."

"Please put it in already, I'm more than ready for it!" She begged him needily.

Natsu pulled his hips back and lined up with her wet entrance then thrust his hips forward fast, ploughing into her and spreading her wide and deep.

Mira gasps and groans at the sudden but welcome penetration as she clamps down around his cock. "Fuck~! Give it to me hot stuff, nice and hard."

Natsu brings his hips back again and starts thrusting hard and fast, pounding into her tight pussy as he kneads her large and soft boobs.

"Oooh fucking yes Natsu~!" Moaned Mira.

She kept pushing her hips back to meet Natsu's thrusts as she slips her hands down between her legs, setting one to work away at rubbing her clit and the other to massage his balls.

Mira slowly became tighter and tighter as she came closer and closer to an orgasm, her mind starting to cloud over from the pleasure. "Soo good~."

Natsu grunted and groaned as he felt pressure build up in his loins, motivating him to go even harder and faster as he pounded into his fellow agent.

Mira hit her limit at the newfound burst of pleasure brought on by the pinkette, she clamps down tightly on the welcome intruder that has induced an intense orgasm in her.

"OOOOH FUCK~!" She shouts as she slumps down on the table. "Natsu, cum in me~, I'm on the pill so don't worry about it."

Natsu groans as the fire in his loins turns into an inferno, feeling close to the edge he grabs her hips and goes even harder and faster. "Soon you naughty little demon."

The extra pleasure rocketing through her body sets off a second wave of orgasms for Mira, her body shaking and slightly spasming as she moans loudly, feeling Natsu's cock spreading her extremely tight and convulsing vaginal walls.

With a deep and throaty cross between a groan and growl, Natsu explodes into her, painting her walls white with his sperm as he continues to ream her at high speeds.

"FUCK YES!" She shouts in pleasure as the hot goo floods her, coming in plentiful bursts and making her feel like she is going to melt like chocolate.

As the two agents come down from their lustful high they look each other in the eyes, no regret or remorse to be found in either, just pure unadulterated want and need as they remain connected at the hip.

After Mira catches her breath she slowly rolls over onto her back on the table and removes her boots and pants so she can wrap her legs around her partner's waist, she sits up and wraps her arms around his neck so that her body is pressed against Natsu's, she starts to passionately kiss him.

"We are going again, get rid of your boots and clothes as you are going to fuck me on everything you have, nothing is going untouched tonight." She says to him between kisses.

"Sounds like the best idea I have heard tonight!" He cheered as he did as she demanded and removed the last of his clothes.

* * *

**Well that's this chapter done, it wraps up the "introduction arc" if you want to call it that, the first meeting between Natsu and Lucy plus some "stress relief" between two agents who have had a lot of sexual tension between them. I've been asked if this would be a Harem fic like my other story, my answer to that is that in a way it will be, but it would be as in they have their needs and it is mutually beneficial doing it with each other, so yes it will be a harem fic as Natsu will get with multiple different women, but I wouldn't really call them girlfriends of his.**

**As always I hope you have enjoyed the chapter, please leave a review if you have feedback or just want to say something, you could just say the word "Something" if you want as well, I don't mind. Follow the story or myself to be alerted for future updates for this story or my other one, favourite if you really like what is going on. Peace and Chicken Grease. (As one of my favourite Youtubers says.)**


	5. Chapter 5

**Magnolia, 12:24pm**

Natsu groaned as he awoke from a deep and refreshing slumber, he feels a weight on his left side and chest, as he looks down he is met with the sight of a gorgeous white haired woman and becomes aware of the soft, silky smooth skin that is pressed against his own.

He smiles and slowly tries to slip out of bed without waking the sleeping beauty only for her to groan and shift about tiredly.

"Shhh." Natsu says softly as he gently rubs Mira's cheek, causing her to smile softly and snuggle up to his pillow instead of him.

He manages to slip away and goes for a shower before throwing on a maroon shirt and some denim jeans, with a quick glance back at the woman sleeping in his bed he leaves the room for the kitchen.

"Kami forgive me…" Natsu said as he looked around at the mess they made in their lustful endeavours.

The pinkette shook his head with a smile then cleaned up the clothes, knocked over furniture and removed any stains that were left behind.

Smiling as he gazed at his handiwork, he went over to the kitchen sink and washed his hands "It was messy but really fucking worth it."

The soft mumbles of a sleeping Mirajane reached his ears causing him to smile some more and decide to let her sleep in for as long as she wants.

As he leaves his apartment, he looks up and down the large alleyway-like corridor of the housing section, lit by simulated light that takes on the look of the sky above, and takes a deep breath of the filtered and forest scented air that is pumped throughout the underground network of the HQ.

"Well I hope that Romeo actually got my bike back here in one piece." Natsu yawned and headed for the garage assigned to him, he smiles as he rolls the door up and reveals his bike.

He flicks on the light and gives his bike a once over. "Well shit… I need to replace the tyres, looks like the past few days took a toll on them… might be a good idea to take a good look at it at the workshop."

He grabs his helmet and put it on then hops onto his bike and tries his best to make his way down the large corridors to the maintenance depot as quietly as he can.

After close to 15 minutes driving through the expansive tunnel system he reaches the depot and pulls into a booth to work on his bike.

Natsu checks the bike's oil then lets it cool down while he looks over the moving parts.

"Oi Natsu, when did you get back?" Called out a raven haired man as he walks over to the pinkette.

"Hmm?" Natsu leaned back and looked out of the booth. "Oh hey Frosty, I got back late last night, wasn't very far away."

"Heard it was a job in Hargeon, they were playing the footage from your contacts for the agents in training when I walked by them on the way here." The agent replied, ignoring the mocking handle.

The pinkette stood up and cleaned some grime off his hands with a cloth. "Yeah Grey, we finally caught that bastard who fucking stole my name, bragging about being me to lure girls to be kidnapped and sold as sex slaves."

"Well that's one good thing, who was that blonde?"

"Lucy?"

"Yeah that one, the one that you were asked to bring here ASAP."

"The dossier said she was a mage, celestial magic, with a lot of potential, comes from the Heartfilia line of extremely talented mages." Natsu said as he went to the bar fridge in the workshop and pulls out a can of soft drink.

"Pass me one, lemonade, aren't the Heartfilia all female celestial mages?" Gray asked as he caught the can that was lazily lobbed to him.

"That's the one, couple of notes about her lineage in the dossier but I don't have that on me… wait yes I do, it's in the pocket dimension."

"Save it, she'll tell us if she wants, any idea what the Director wanted with her?"

"I don't fucking know." Natsu said with a shrug and sipped his drink. "But if I come across anything I'll let you know."

"Thanks man, so I saw you jumped this girl off a back of a truck into one of the ospreys." Said Grey as he walked around the motorbike.

"Had no other choice, wouldn't have done it otherwise, now I just need to make sure nothing is loose or damaged from doing that, plus I need new tyres on the front and rear, pretty sure a couple of bullets grazed the sidewalls."

"Yeah I saw the whole clip, good call on the jacket, she copped a bullet on the bike and I think I saw one graze her in the casino, security cam caught it."

Natsu nodded and started taking the wheels off the bike. "I'd rather get shot and be injured then have someone else get shot and I have to drag them all the way out of the ship or building or something like that and onto my bike. They'd bleed out, but on me at least I can cauterise the wound shut, unlike them."

"Need a hand?" Asked the icy agent.

"Yeah can you change the tyres for me, I need to make sure nothing is broken."

"Got it." Grey said as he picked up the wheels and headed for the fitting machine. "Erza is running ahead of time by the way."

"There is no surprise there, she is efficient like that, how long do you reckon?"

"Half a week at most, tonight at the very least."

Natsu popped his head up from behind his bike. "Nah not tonight, she'd have to be done soon, unless she is getting flown back in?"

"Probably man, scuttlebutt said that the Director has news for us active agents, apparently we are getting another recruit and he'll attach them to one of us for training." The raven haired man called out over the noise created by the machine.

"Another one?" Natsu replied as he raised an eyebrow but got stuck into inspecting the bike again.

"Yeah, they'll most likely need a full training regimen to bring them up to operational levels."

"Man I don't envy the sucker who gets stuck on babysitting duty."

"Well it's more time to relax and put your feet up, you know, just chill out." Grey said with a shadow of a smirk thrown over his shoulder.

"Fuck off." Natsu shook his head with a small grin as he flipped off the ice mage. "Anyway, like I was saying, I don't envy them, I just prefer to keep busy than sit on my arse all day waiting for a rook to get good."

"It's not all bad, I was aiding one of the young bloods with their training, and she seemed to have a good hold of things."

"How young are we talking?"

Grey carried the wheels back to Natsu, complete with brand new tyres. "Twelve I think, so not that old, but she shows promise."

"The younger they are the better they pick this stuff up, I was how young when I bumped into Gramps?"

"Eight I think it was, that or nine." Grey replied as he kneeled down and started fitting the wheel back on the bike while his friend changed the air filter.

"And after all my training I'm considered one of the best A rank operatives and am eligible for the S rank promotion."

"Don't let your ego get too large, I won't be able to stay in this workshop and help you, it would just push me right out."

"I said one of the best, I know there are other operatives that are in the running for the promotion too. One of them is right in front of me."

"Thanks for the compliment." Grey laughed and stood up. "Well your tyres are done, I'll be in the next booth working on my car."

"The usual go around or the ZL1 Camaro?" Natsu asked as he too stood up.

"Camaro, I'm going to give it some blue and white flake in the paint. I actually finished masking it all up when you turned up."

Natsu nodded as he thought about how the car would look. "Any idea when the old man is going to give us the news?"

"I reckon he'll call for an assembly once Erza gets back, but who knows, it could be before that."

"Well don't take too long with your painting, you might miss it or worse, have to leave the job half done."

"Yeah yeah." Grey replied with a wave over his shoulder as he made his way to the car. "Before you head off you wanna give me a push into the paint booth?"

"Sure." The pinkette said as he followed the agent to the other booth and moved behind the car. He put his hands on the rear end of the car and waited for the word to go.

Grey got into his car and put it into neutral then released the handbrake. "Ok let's go."

Natsu started pushing as Grey slid out of the cabin, he stayed between the car and the open door so he could steer the car and stop it when they get into the paint booth.

"Well I'll leave you to it, I'm going to run the tunnels and head back to the Hub, see what's going on over there and hand in my report, then if all is good I'll head topside and go up to my house to see how Happy is coming along."

"All good, thanks for the hand."

"Likewise, see you around Grey." Natsu said with a wave as he headed to his bike.

"Yeah, see you Natsu."

The pinkette started up his bike and drove out of the workshop, making his way to the central hub of the HQ.

After a ten minute drive he rolls through a set of open blast doors and into the main hub of the underground complex, he looks about as he pulls up into a parking space, looking at the buzzing hive of activity and trying to find a particular person.

Spotting a flash of blue hair and snapping to it like a hawk, he shuts off the bike and runs to the person of interest.

"Levy!" He calls out through the sparse crowd of members of various professions.

Levy whips around and spots the source of the voice, she smiles as she waves him over. "Natsu how did your mission go?!"

"Better since you were able to get me that intel. Still ended up a mess though."

"Yeah I saw, I had a feeling that the police would jump the gun, I did a background check on the lady running that operation and she has a history of making rash calls, but at least the police that stormed the ship were SWAT fully kitted out in armour, they didn't receive any casualties."

"Yeah at least she didn't take half measures on that." Natsu replied as he fell in step with the shorter woman as they headed through a doorway and into the main section of the facility.

After a few moments of peaceful silence, Natsu turns his head to his companion. "So have you heard anything about what Director Makarov is going to talk about?"

"Have I?" Levy replied with a small smile. "I AM the Archivist after all, I have the access to all of our data and so I can help all of the agents with up to date intel on the field."

"Well?"

"Sorry Natsu, while I do know, I'm not exactly allowed to speak about it beyond what is already rumoured."

"So we are getting a new recruit and they'll be paired with one of the experienced agents?"

"That's about the jist of it." Levy confirmed as she gazed up to the male's dark eyes.

"How old are they?"

"Not much younger than you."

"Wait What?!" Natsu shouted in surprise.

"Indoor voice Natsu."

"But if they are practically my age then they won't have gone through all the conditioning that you, me, Grey, Erza and all the other agents have gone through…"

"I know, I don't like it either but it's not my call to make." Levy agreed with a nod as she led the way into the canteen to have her lunch.

Natsu crossed his arms as his face hardened into a serious visage. "They'll freeze up and break down in combat Levy."

"Which is why they'll be placed in the care of an expert, for training and to break them down so they won't break down when the time comes."

Levy walked up to the counter and smiled at a busty woman with white hair that ends above her shoulders. "Hiya Lis."

Natsu waved at the younger sister of Mira as his mind goes back to last night, his eyes glazing over slightly with a small grin tugging at the corner of his mouth. "Afternoon Lisanna."

"Oh hey you two, what can I get you?" The blue eyed woman said.

Levy looks back at Natsu who speaks up. "Just a bottle of Coke will do me."

"Alright." She said then turned back to Lisanna. "A bottle of Coke and one of Sprite please."

"Coming right up." Lisanna chimed merrily as she grabbed the requested drinks out of the fridge behind her. "Anything else Levy?"

"Yeah." The bluenette said as she put a finger to her cheek in thought. "Can I have a wrap with shredded ham, pepper jack cheese and the lot Lis?"

"Sure, give me a minute and I can take it to you if you want to find a seat?"

Levy nods happily and grabs the two drinks, she looks around and heads over to an empty table with Natsu hot on her heels.

"You need to stop ogling poor little Lisanna, if you stared at her any longer you would have started drooling."

"Yeah yeah, anyway back on topic, how is one of us supposed to train the new recruit? While we are all trained to resist torture, we have been exposed to it for a long time, so we won't break easily, what are we supposed to do with them?" Natsu asked as he took a seat, he was starting to become a little frustrated.

"Train them to be as good as they can be, and try not to break them too hard I guess…" Levy replied as she sipped her drink.

Natsu sighs and gives in. "I guess it is what it is, as I said to Grey, I don't envy the person who has to train them."

Levy smirks as she looked over the top of the bottle at the man before her. "Careful what you say, it may end up being you in that position."

"Please no, I'm the worst example to be following, I'll freely admit that."

"Say what you will Natsu, but you are one of the best we have, even if you aren't S rank, you are as good as one." Levy said with a finger pointed out at him.

"I also get yelled at for destroying things the most too you know."

"Granted those times you are using your magic which is in its nature to be destructive but here is the thing, you don't rely on it, you have the skill and raw talent, not to mention quick thinking and are deadly accurate with all manner of weapons." Levy rebutted as she flicked her hand at him.

"That's me, how am I meant to transfer those attributes to another?"

"Through hard work and dedication." Came a second female voice, the two looked over and saw Lisanna standing there with a platter containing Levy's lunch. "You just have to push and push, train and train, going as hard as possible until they can perform."

Natsu throws his hands up in defeat. "Well I guess we'll see where the chips fall."

"That you will Natsu, now I have a question for you." Lisanna said as she pulled a chair over and sat down.

"Shoot."

"You wouldn't happen to know where my big sis is?"

"Oh she and I had some celebratory drinks for a successful mission, had some at the bar then went back to my place down under for some more drinks."

"Oh ok, well I hope she hasn't got too much of a hangover, I might go over there and see how she is if she doesn't turn up by the end of my shift." Lisanna said in a caring tone as she rose from her seat.

As Natsu opened his mouth to speak the PA system came alive with Makarov's voice. "Can all active A Class and S Class agents assemble in the auditorium in the next 10 minutes."

"Well I guess duty calls?" Natsu said as he got up.

"Lis and I will be there after I've eaten." Levy spoke up as she looked over the wrap right in front of her mouth at the pinkette.

"You sure you don't want anything Nat?" Lisanna asked curiously.

"Hmm, you know what, can I get a chicken schnitzel burger with the lot to go Lis."

"Sure, come back to the counter with me and I'll get it all sorted for you." She replied as she turned on her heels and quickly walked back over to her station.

The man follows the white haired woman, his eyes falling down to her ass, noticing that it is confined in tight daisy duke denim shorts then back up her slim torso that is covered by a baby blue singlet top, he comes to a stop at the counter and watches her get to work on the food.

"Any idea why he called us all in for a meeting?" Lisanna said with her eyes down at the burger she is making.

"Rumour is it is a new recruit, Levy said that they'd be paired with one of us for guidance and training and that they are about a year younger than me."

"So they'd be my age right Natsu?"

"Yeah seems like it."

"Well here is your burger, I'll be right behind you, I have to clean up and give someone a call so they can take over."

"Ok well I'll see you there." Natsu said as he took the packaged burger with a smile and headed out for the meeting.

He sipped his drink and ate the burger while he walked down the hallways, nodding greetings to passes-by and stopping for quick conversations with some.

A door opened to his immediate left and out came a black haired man, neither person could stop in time and they collided.

"Ah sorry, I didn't see you." Said the man.

Natsu shook his head slightly and took a good look at the man, noting that he had dark marks under his eyes from lack of sleep and a thick, coarse black stubble that spanned his jawline and up under his messy black hair.

"Long nights again brother?" Natsu asked the man followed by a bite of his burger.

Zeref blinked and focused on his younger brother as a yawn escaped his mouth. "Yeah… I've been going over footage of the recruits, forming training regimes and just working out ways to help them improve."

The pinkette holds out his bottle of Coke to the other man who just holds up a hand and politely declines the proffered drink. "Sorry Natsu, I was actually about to grab a coffee from the break room nearby."

"All good, you heading to this meeting?"

"Yeah, I need to see what I am working with so I can get an idea of what kind of plan I need to make for them."

"Well from what Levy has told me, this new person is about my age and as green as grass in the Magnolia central park."

Zeref sighs as his shoulders slump in slight defeat. "Fuck the coffee, I need some hard liquor. And a long nap."

"That nap might end up as a 3 day comatose sleep going by the look of you." Natsu jested with a cheeky grin.

"That might be the case." Zeref said as he started making his way to the meeting room. "Come on, let's not be late."

"What no comeback?" Natsu said as he finished his burger and set the paper wrapper alight.

"No. I'm too tired for your shit right now." The black haired man replied firmly. "And others' shit too."

"Yeah you need a good sleep."

"No shit, I look like a racoon."

"You sure you don't want that coffee?"

"I'm sure, I'll sleep on the couch in my office after the meeting."

"Just as long as you don't fall asleep in the meeting again Zeref."

"I'll try not to." Zeref said as they entered the meeting place to a room full of agents and other personal.

The two Dragneels parted ways and sat in their respective chairs, they chatted among their peers as they waited for the Director to arrive.

After a noisy ten minutes, the wizened Director enters the room with the youth-like jubilance that he has maintained despite his many years as Director.

His eyes scan the room as he jumps up onto the table. "Is everyone here?"

"Aside from Erza." Replied Zeref as he yawned tiredly. "Though I wouldn't be surprised if she kicked down the door during this meeting."

"I'll get her up to speed later on, I'll try and make this quick." Makarov stated as he started pacing the length of the table. "As I'm sure some of you have heard, we have finally made a breakthrough and caught up to the elusive identity thief of Natsu, Bora of Prominence. He has been detained by the Hargeon Police Force and has been transported to a secure facility."

All the agents give their full attention to their Director as he continues to speak to his audience. "You would have all seen or heard tell of the mission that Agent Natsu has recently returned from."

The old man gazed around at the nodding heads. "I've had it played for the recruits for a number of reasons, first and foremost being a showcase of what to do when the shit hits the fan, keep a level head and continue with the mission, even if mission objectives and situations change."

"In the instance of Natsu, the police force jumped the gun and set the ship on high alert." He paused in front of the pinkette and gestured to him. "This in turn made his mission much more difficult, going from a simple sneak into the secure area, neutralise the target and sneak out with the hostage, to protect the hostage at all costs as you fight through an entire ship full of hostiles armed to the teeth."

"It was such a fucking hassle, the hostage was trigger shy too so I couldn't do much there." Natsu piped up as he put his feet up on the table and his arms behind his head in a relaxed manner.

"To be fair she lacks the training you have had Natsu." Levy spoke up.

"Still, it was your duty to protect her with your life, and that you did." Makarov continued as he continued to pace the table.

"You did all you could to keep her safe given the circumstances and completed the mission successfully, as that is why I chose to have it shown to the agents in training, audio and all."

Ignoring the audible groan let out by the mentioned agent, Makarov continued with the meeting. "Now moving on, the other reason I have brought up Natsu's mission is that we have a new recruit that I'll be inducting into the Fast Ball Program, no doubt some of you have heard that they'll be paired with someone in this room so they can be trained up and shown the ropes quickly so they are mission ready ASAP."

Murmurs of curiosity and annoyance spread around the room like wildfire, some uncomfortable with taking a green recruit under their wing, others expressing their concern for the unknown recruit being placed in the program, citing that the stress would get to them and they may break.

The Director held up a hand, silencing the table around him and allowing him the quiet he needs to continue speaking. "I know all of your dispositions on this particular subject, there are those among you who publically speak out against this type of training within the agency walls, but it has shown in previous cases to be an effective means of teaching."

"In fact there are some prime examples in this room." He continued as he looked around the room, his eyes lingering a few moments longer on Zeref before moving on. "So let's cut to the chase and get onto introductions."

He turned to his assistant who was standing by one of the side doors and nodded to her, signalling her to bring in the new recruit. "Now before you all voice your concerns, I've had our resident doctor, Dr Porlyusica, runs tests on the recruit, in her evaluations she scored exceptionally well for all the requirements for being an agent, and while she isn't the best in show right now, given training I'm sure she can roll with the best of you."

Levy spoke up as she leant forwards in her chair, resting her elbows on the table with her fingers interlocked and forming an arch upon which her chin rested. "Will she be able to undergo the Enhancement Therapy?"

"The good Doctor has tested her DNA compatibility along with the reactions to the therapy on the blood extracted for the usual tests, she has proved highly compatibly with the formula and as such will rapidly adapt to it." Makarov replied as he faced the bluenette completely and answered her assuredly. "But first she'll need time to settle in and have a little bit of training under her belt before we get to that stage."

Levy nods and sits back, relaxed and content with the answer she was given, allowing silence to fall over the meeting room for a few moments before the door once more opened for the assistant.

After a moments pause, caused by him turning his attention to the newly opened door, Makarov spoke up once again. "Agents, I'd like you to welcome the newest recruit and soon to be protégé to one of you, Lucy Heartfilia." He extended his arm to the door as a blonde woman walked in, dressed in a white and blue Heart Cruz crop top with a black short skirt and matching black knee high boots.

Natsu's feet dropped to the floor as he rocket forwards in the chair, hands landing hard on the table with a bang, shock evident on his face as he exclaims. "What The Fuck Is This?"

* * *

**Well that's the end of this chapter, I would have gotten it out a bit sooner but I got tied up with other things, coming next in the pipe is another chapter for Continued Life of a Dragon Slayer, hopefully you all enjoyed this chapter, it was a little bit slower than compared to the first lot of chapters but I suppose it can't always be nonstop action.**

**Peace and chicken grease, I'll see you next time.**


	6. Chapter 6

"What The Fuck Is This?" Exclaimed Natsu as his eyes focused on the blonde woman standing next to the Director.

"This Natsu, as you damn well know, is Lucy Heartfilia." Makarov began, only to be rudely interrupted by the currently hot-headed agent.

"I fucking know who she is, I just rescued her and brought her here under direct orders from you!"

"Nat calm down…" Lisanna said, soothingly from a few seats to his left, her eyes on Natsu's own.

Natsu's eyes flash red momentarily as he stood up sharply and punched the table with one hand, pointing at the woman with his other. "She has no training or background in this area, hell she is a celestial mage, someone who has to use magic to open doors to the celestial realm to bring forth spirits, what if we run into a Magic Suppression Field, she won't be able to do jack shit!"

"ENOUGH!" Makarov yelled in anger as he slammed an enlarged fist against the table. "I realise the downfalls of someone like her, but her potential is so great that if trained, she'll be a force to be reckoned with."

A loud yawn breaks through the tense room as the dark-haired Dragneel spoke up in a tired voice. "So passing over my brother's bullshit, let us cut to the chase and get back to business, some of us have better things to do than to listen to his bitchy crap right now."

Natsu shot his older brother a callous look as his anger hasn't subsided but he relents none the less, allowing Zeref to continue talking as he returns to his seat.

"Ah don't look at me like that, we both know that you'll calm down and accept her into our little family here. So Sir, who is it that is going to train her?"

"Well this decision wasn't made just now out of spite but because they have already worked together." Makarov said as he turned from Zeref to the younger Dragneel.

"No! I refuse for fuck's sake!" Natsu loudly stated his displeasure at the situation forced upon him.

"Tough Fucking Titties kiddo, I already had you pegged to train her anyway so man up and do it."

Natsu grumbles and leans back in the chair. "Fine but she better surprise me."

"Well, I guess I better go put together a training guide, am I free to go, Director?" Zeref asked.

"Yes, off you go, and get some sleep too, you've almost passed out a few times in this meeting."

Zeref nods his thanks and gets off his chair with a groan. "I'll see you all around."

A murmur of goodbyes sweeps the room, all directed at the tired man.

"Lisanna, could you show her around the base, get her acclimatised and ready for training. Oh and show her to where she'll be staying until she can get a place above ground."

"Of course Director Makarov." She replied with an eager nod as she rose from her chair and took a quiet Lucy's hand, tugging her out of the room excitedly, followed by Makarov's assistant who is trying to give the excited woman the folder containing all related information.

Natsu sighs as he starts to stand. "Can I go now?"

"Yes Natsu you can, go calm down and once you have a level head, think it over and consider how to best go about training the new recruit." Makarov said as he waved his hand towards the door. "There are still things I need to tell the other agents."

"Woopty fucking do, I'll be in the gym is someone wants to fill me in." The pinkette said is a bland and bored tone as he walked to the door. "Tell her if she needs me that I'll be there."

A warm and cheery voice sang out from the table, the voice of his beautiful handler. "Natsu~ don't forget that you have an appointment with Doctor Porlyusica in the Medical Wing."

"Ah shit yeah… thanks for reminding me of that Mira." Natsu replied sheepishly as he turned to look at the model, the anger from moments ago draining out of him as the melodic voice soothed him. "I kinda forgot I have a check-up with her today."

"No problem." She said with a smile. "Don't push yourself too hard in the gym, you don't want to sway the results and be put in forced medical care and not be able to go to on missions."

Natsu waved a hand at her as he turned back to the door. "I'll try." With a smile, he left the meeting room.

"Well he calmed down quickly…" Freed spoke up for the first time during the meeting.

"They totally screwed last night I bet." Bickslow bantered.

"No~, I just know how to calm his nerves, it's my job as his handler to make sure he doesn't fly off the handle and get hot-headed out on the field." Mira giggled with a hand coving her mouth. "But maybe there might have been some action last night."

"Nope, they definitely did it Bicks." Evergreen spoke with a grin. "She didn't come home last night as Elfman and I were having a movie night with Lisanna and when I saw her today she had a limp."

Mira blushed and crossed her legs with a slightly embarrassed look on her face due to being called out by her younger brother's girlfriend.

* * *

**Gym – Fairy Tail HQ**

Natsu stood in a boxing ring, shirtless and puffing gently as his robotic boxing companion stands strong opposite him, ready for the next move.

"Grrraaah!" Natsu growls out in frustration as he pushes forward, ducking and dodging blows where he can as he delivers punch after punch, counter after counter, on the simulated flesh of the robot, beads of sweat slowly running down his skin.

As Natsu is about to land a punch to the jaw of his opponent, the machine steps back unexpectedly, causing the pinkette to overextend the punch and open himself up for an attack as the robot twists its body around to deliver a heel strike to the head.

"Fuck." Natsu gasps as he brings up his arms in defence, as the kick meets his forearms he moves back slightly to lessen the power of the strike, in one fluid movement he turns the block into a grapple and grabs the leg of the bot. "Got you now!"

With a grunt of exertion, he whipped the machine around and threw it to a corner, he followed quickly with a leap only to be met with a kick, Natsu catches the foot in his hand and uses his momentum to deliver a devastating strike to the face of the boxing robot, snapping its head back and causing it to fall to the ground limply.

"KO!" Shouted an automated message through the speakers around the ring. "Winner Agent Salamander!"

Natsu stepped back to the middle of the ring, puffing and sweating as the robot rose to its feet.

"Another round?" The robot asked as it moved to the centre and faced the pinkette.

"Not this time B103, I have a check-up with the Doc, you can return to your station now."

The robot nodded and bowed to its opponent before leaving the ring and heading to a nearby wall where the other robots wait in standby.

The sound of someone clapping reaches his ears, causing him to sniff the air as he turns to the sound, picking up an unfamiliar vanilla smell and a peach smell that he knows well. "Lisanna? How long were you there?"

Stood by the edge of the mat were two women, one blonde and the other silver/white, the latter of which smiled and waved as his eyes landed on hers. "We watched this whole round, I am showing Lucy around and this was the next stop."

The blonde's knees shook as her mouth watered at the sight of the man before her, battle scarred skin wrapped tightly around dense muscle that complemented his frame amazingly well, her eyes follow a bead of sweat that runs down from his collarbone, down between his pecks and abs to his pants, a clicking hand in front of her eyes breaks her out of the trance.

"Lucy you there? I've been trying to talk to you." Lisanna said, worried about her new friend.

"Oh… Sorry, I zoned out." Lucy blushed and looked away from the man who was now leaning against the ropes in front of them.

"That's ok, I was just telling Natsu that our next spot is the Medical wing and he wanted to know if he could tag a long since he has to go too."

"Well, either way, I've gotta head there, due for a check-up." Natsu said as he slipped out of the ring and stood in front of the girls. "I gotta go for a quick wash up though so feel free to show her around here while I'm doing it."

Lisanna nods as she watches him go off into the change rooms. "Well that settles it!" She said cheerfully as she led the blonde to the wall with the robots. "I know you asked before when you saw the fight but these are our sparring bots." She gestures to the line of robots that range in height and build. "They all pull from a data storage centre that contains the knowledge of all the martial arts in the world, from normal boxing or taekwondo to specialised military hand to hand, like krav maga."

Lucy nods and inspects the robots. "They look so lifelike…"

"Our in-house research and development department noticed that in testing we fought harder and were more cautious against human-like opponents instead of the previous iterations of these training robots." Lisanna said as he ran a hand over the simulated skin. "So they developed artificial muscle and skin and put them on the frames, taught them how to judge when and how to take a hit, they gave them human reaction times, but those of expert martial artists."

"Can someone like me use them right away?" The blonde asked her new friend.

"Yes, you can scale their difficulty to your choice and abilities, they do have a training mode but no one uses it, for that, it's better having a human touch."

"Oh ok, who do you recommend me learning from?" Lucy said curiously as she looked around the room again.

"Honestly, your best bet is someone who specialises in hand to hand combat, while all of us are proficient at it, people like Big Sis and Natsu, whose magic makes them extremely powerful and very dangerous up close, they would be the best to train with, my sister and Natsu frequently spar in their down time, sometimes Gray join in and fights too."

"I never saw Natsu fight someone up close, I only saw him shoot and kill multiple people in the blink of the eye." Lucy said as she looked back to the youngest Strauss.

"Yeah I watched the footage, he has the fastest reflexes out of all of us, even Jet who uses speed magic which allows him to run extremely fast, think of the Flash from those DC comics and shows. But Jet has a top speed." Lisanna said with a hum as she led the way to the exercise machines.

"Natsu can beat someone like that?!"

"Yes, he can, you haven't seen the extent of his abilities, nor what he can do when he is really mad."

"What do you mean?"

Lisanna sighs and sits down on the bench of one of the workout machines, her eyes distant and sad as she remembers what happened.

"What she means is one mission that she and I were on a while back, I was drugged and put to sleep by a group of slavers, not unlike Bora." Natsu said as he walked over, clean and dressed in new clothes. "She also was caught but while I was roughed up, beaten, bruised and bloody, she was stripped naked, abused."

Lisanna looks down, not fond of remembering what happened that night in what could easily be called hell.

"I broke free, killed my captors, then I followed my nose to her."

"Followed your nose?" Lucy asked, surprised at the phrase. "Like a bloodhound?"

"Ah yeah, you don't know do you, well since I guess I'll be working with you and training you then you ought to know, but I'll tell you that later." Natsu said as he scratched his cheek. "When I found her, I found her surrounded by men, she was in handcuffs and forced to kneel on the cold hard floor."

"Oh…" Lucy muttered, not liking where the story is going, not one bit.

"Yeah, you understand now, you understand why I was mad, no, hate and rage incarnate. From the smell I knew they hadn't penetrated her, I couldn't see or smell blood, there were no signs of rape, at least not yet." The pinkette continued as the woman of the story curled into a ball. "Not of the penetrative kind at least, but she was being forced to suck dick, every dick in the room, she was covered in cum, from her tits and face to her stomach and thighs, even her back and ass."

"The used me for their own sick pleasure…" Lisanna spoke up in a small voice, the horror of that night vivid in her eyes. "When Natsu came in, I saw him right away, he was covered in blood, both his own and that of others, but his eyes, those sweet dark green eyes, they were anything but, they were blood red and full of rage, he looked bloodthirsty and pissed, he was ready to tear my captors apart at the seams…"

Lucy shivered at the thought of what the poor woman had to suffer through, she remained silent and let them continue with the story.

Lisanna opened her mouth to speak but couldn't get anything more than a small noise to come out past her lips, Natsu sat down next to his friend and pulled her to his chest, he ran a gently hand through her hair in an attempt to soothe her as he continued, his voice soft but lacking no less impact. "When I saw what they were doing, my mind went blank, all I saw was red. In an instant I had crossed the room and grabbed the guy who had his cock down her throat, I threw him across the room and through a thick, reinforced wall, he died on impact."

He paused as the blonde gasped in shock, her eyes wide in horror and disbelief, only for a quiet voice to come from his chest. "It happened Lucy, every word he has and will speak, it all happened…"

Natsu gently patted his closest friend on her head. "He was the luckiest, he died a quick and painless death… the rest, well… they got what they deserve. We were trapped in an MSF, I mentioned it in the meeting, so we couldn't use our magic, but it didn't stop me, I broke every last bone in their body, but I made sure they were all awake and alive for it all, rage building in me, growing and growing as the smell of a defiled Lisanna swamped me, I kept trying to use magic out of instinct but I resorted to just using my hands."

"He castrated them all Lucy… He fed them their whole genitals as they were bleeding out from the holes left behind, soon his magic found a way out but it wasn't the same, it wasn't normal, it was dark and twisted, hellish, we all know what it was now, but back then… He was the devil, it was as if he rose from hell to personally collect the souls of these damned men." Lisanna said as her eyes rose to meet the eyes of the other woman. "The fire cauterised the bleeding wounds shut, perfectly controlled yet chaotic by nature, but then, one by one, he slowly burnt the men away until only ashes remained… the smell… I'll never forget it."

"By the time I was done, our back-up had arrived in the form of two other Agents, Knight and Frosty, Erza and Gray, they had just shut off the MSF and had made a beeline for our position, it wasn't that hard to find us though, just follow the screams, the begging, the smell of death and burning flesh, the ashes in the wind." Natsu said, happy to be close to the end of the story. "They came in just as I reduced the last person to ash, no questions were asked, no blame was placed, not when they came in and saw why…, why I had lost myself to my rage and decimated them all, Erza gave Lisanna a new set of clothes after she cleaned her up and we went home, even when the footage from our contacts was reviewed and analysed, the only thing that came from me was praise and many thanks from her family, that and lots of tests ran on myself to find out what the power was."

Lisanna slowly moved away from her friend and stood up. "I never left the house for a month after that mission, I couldn't talk to any guy except for my brother, the Director, and Natsu. But I got better, though the memory will stay with me. Come, I don't want to make Natsu late for his appointment." She dusted herself off and left the room.

Lucy looked at the man next to her. "I couldn't imagine going through that…"

"You're lucky I turned up when I did, or else you would have been in that very situation, probably an even worse one." Natsu said gravely as he stood and followed the youngest Strauss out.

Lucy shrunk back a little as she dwelled on his words, her eyes sank to the floor and teared up but her head snapped up moments later when her name was called, she saw Natsu waiting at the door and ran to him.

"You probably don't know where the med bay is and it seems like Lisanna has gone off to do something to make herself happy again after remembering all that. So I guess it falls to me to show you around."

Lucy shook her head and stated that when she was checked upon by the Doctor that she was in the room she was placed in overnight, earning a nod from Natsu.

"Ok well follow me I guess, it's this way."

* * *

**Medical Centre – Fairy Tail HQ**

The centre was like a hive, buzzing with activity as nurses and doctors moved from room to room and bed to bed, checking on the various charges in their care, from the recruits who have suffered injuries in training, to operatives and agents receiving medical attention for wounds suffered out in the field.

The blonde followed her guide into the noisy hospital that provides their services both the employees working for the agency and the civilians who live in Magnolia and the surrounds.

Natsu walked over to one of the receptionists who looks up and smiles. "Hey Sylvane, is the grouchy woman in?"

The woman with seafoam green hair and matching eyes giggled at the comment. "Yes Mister Dragneel, she is in her office waiting for you, probably a good idea to take a peace offering with you."

"Does a coffee sound like a good idea?"

"No, I think she was talking about food just not that long ago, maybe a chocolate bar or two?"

Natsu chuckles and shakes his head. "We'll see what happens, I might get beaten over the head."

"Good luck Sir." The receptionist said with a smile as she watched the pinkette and his blonde companion head down the hallway.

"There are so many people here…" Lucy said softly, her voice filled with awe as she gazed around but stuck close to the man.

"A lot of them would be regular people who come into the hospital for check-ups, surgeries and anything else they would need." Natsu replied as he stopped by a vending machine, leaning forward to inspect the contents. "This particular part of the facility is open to the public."

Lucy nods as she looks around, her mind lost in thought as it runs a mile a minute, she barely hears Natsu when he buys some chocolate bars or even hear them hit the collection tray, it's not until something taps her nose that her eyes come back to focus and see the foil wrapper of a chocolate bar resting against her nose.

"Ah there you are, as I was asking, would you like a chocolate bar? It's a Cherry Ripe." Natsu asked as he brought the large bar back from her nose and held it out to her.

"Oh thank you." The blonde replied as she took it from him and gently unwrapped one end, she saw the almost a dozen other bars that he is holding. "Hungry are you…?"

"Somewhat but only some of these are for me, the rest are for the Doc, come let's go before I get chewed up for being late again." The pinkette said as he turned to head further down the hallway, leaving the blonde behind as she nibbles on a corner of the bar then hurries after him a second later.

A few minutes later the duo reached the office labelled 'Doctor Porlyusica' and Natsu entered without bothering to knock or announce his arrival at all, causing the woman inside to look up briefly from her desk then look back down at her notes as she spoke. "Its common curtesy to knock before you enter you know, still the same brat that you have always been."

"Well, it could be worse you know?" He chuckled as he walked to her desk, followed by a timid yet curious Lucy.

"Oh, how would that be?"

"Well for one, I'm not late, and two, I bought a few gifts." Natsu said as he placed all but two bars on the desk for the older woman.

"Hmph, thanks." She said as she turned her eyes from the paper to the bars and finally to the clock. "And correct, you seem a minute early this time. For a change." The woman looked back at the bars of chocolate and took one, she debated on eating it now or later but her hunger got the better of her. "Sit."

Natsu nodded and sat on the chair opposite her desk, Lucy stood by a wall as she watched the whole exchange.

Porlyusica ate the bar slowly and in silence as she opened the agent's file on her computer. "Looks like you are due for a basic medical review and also a run in the scanner." Her eyes rose to the man before her, a nod was given to her to show his cooperation. "Go to the curtain and strip to your underwear, I'll do your basic tests first then we can move to the scan after."

"Right." The pinkette responded as he rose from his seat, without hesitation, he moved to the medical bed and removed his clothes piece by piece until he was down to his boxers and sat on the edge of the bed.

The doctor gathered up some instruments then moved to the bed, checking his eyes, muscles, heart and lungs, skin condition, bone and joints, movement range, the condition of his genitals, she checked his reflexes then grabbed a small device with a speaker built in.

Lucy's ears perked up as a neutral tone was emitted from the device, sheer curiosity outweighed her better judgement as she decided to move over to the doctor and patient. "What is that?"

Porlyusica glanced at the woman with a raised eyebrow but continued to test Natsu's hearing, the tone getting quieter and quieter.

"It is a device to check hearing range, it can be used with headphones or standalone, I prefer it like this as we are just checking how well I can hear, not the frequency." Natsu informed the blonde as he looked at the curious woman.

Lucy started to get confused as the sound started to disappear from her hearing range but it is clear to her that the man could still somehow hear it, she opens her mouth to speak but his silenced by his finger on her lips.

A few moments later, Natsu nodded to the doctor to let her know when he has lost the sound, she picks up her notepad and records the reading on it, making a list of the various outcomes of the tests. "That seems to have been a quieter result than your previous test, I'd like to make a second pass to confirm the results."

"That's fine Doc, fire away." He replied as the older woman ran the test again, getting a result roughly equal to the previous pass, Natsu watches as the test result was written down.

"Ok now it's time to do a few scans, get dressed and we will continue." Porlyusica commanded as she returned to her desk to type in the results for the standard tests.

Natsu jumped off of the bed and started to pull his pants back on, glancing at a blushing Lucy who had just realised his state of dress he points up at his shirt that's hanging by her head. "Could you chuck me that quickly, the sooner we finish this the sooner we can move on, maybe find lisanna though I bet I'd have to call her to figure out where she went."

"Oh sure." She grabbed the shirt and held it out for him as he put his shoes back on. "So about my training…"

Natsu sighs and stand straight, takes his shirt and pulls it on. "Don't worry, for all the talk I did back at the meeting, I was worked up, that's why I went to the gym and fought the bot, to blow off steam. You are fine now though, I guess I welcome the new challenge." He stretches and gives her a long look up and down, causing her to blush under his scrutiny. "You look reasonably fit, so I'm guessing you are the kind of girl who likes to stay in shape."

Lucy nods at his observation and stretches her body. "Yes, I do sometimes eat things I probably shouldn't but a girl has to treat herself sometimes now doesn't she?"

"I'll have to have your medical report sent to me so I can go over it, if you are half as good as I can see then the initial physical side will be easy, at least until you go for the Enhancement Therapy." Natsu said as he walked to the desk and had a quick word to the doctor who gave a single nod and complied with his request.

"What do you mean?" Lucy asked as she followed him.

"Enhancement Therapy, or just Enhancement, is a process all Agents go though, with various degrees of success, now mind you each new variant of the formula boosts the success of how well a specific person takes to the Enhancement." Natsu said as he turned to the blonde. "Now in Fairy Tail's employ are two types of 'Spies' to use the slang term, you have Operatives, non-magical 'spies' who do all the normal things one would expect a spy to do, then you have Agents, like myself and you now that you have been inducted." He checks over his shoulder then sits on the edge of the desk and crosses his arms. "Due to our special nature, the ability to use magic, we are sent on the jobs that would possibly kill a normal being, to help us survive these dangerous situations better and recover after each mission, we get given a special compound."

"Explain on the way brat, we still have your scans to do." Porlyusica interrupted as she rose from her desk and swept past the desk, heading for the door.

Natsu nodded and quickly hurried after her with Lucy hot on his heels. "So continuing, this compound is first tested against a portion of our blood to test compatibility, if a change needs to be made then our chemists in the RnD department will tailor the formula to better suit your physiological needs. But even with that tailoring, some people can only handle so much of the process, it still works, but it won't be to the degree that it would have worked with someone with a better compatibility factor."

"So some of the blood I gave for testing went to this process?" Lucy asked curiously as she looked up at the man, curious as to where he fell on the spectrum.

"Correct, I've heard that you have a high compatibility factor so you'll hopefully take to the Enhancement extremely well. So if we take two examples, we'll use myself and the head of intelligence, Levy. We are both full blown agents, both have worked out on the field. But, she was only able to take the standard Enhancement amount, with the improvements to the compound that has changed though, but with me, they were able to push it, and push it, and they kept pushing it well beyond anything they have seen before, putting stronger and stronger strains of the compound into my body until I hit my limit."

"So they used you as a test subject?!"

"Calm down, the short answer is yes, but the long answer is more complicated. I wanted it, during the sessions they will debrief you on how you are going, what is happening to your body, when they told me that I was taking the compound better than anything they have seen before, better than the projected values, I gave them permission to essentially go mad scientist on me, I spent a good few months down in RnD having tests ran on me." Natsu said as he walked into the scanning room and over to the machine itself.

"But why?" Lucy asked, bewildered that he would do it.

"Because it would help them develop better and more powerful versions to be used on the other agents, even to this day I am the first to receive the newest batch and run tests to make sure it's safe for the others due to my own natural hardiness."

"So this formula, it sounds like a super soldier serum you see in movies and comic books, in novels." Lucy said as she crossed her arms under her bust.

"And in many ways it is, but unlike in those things, you don't see any physical changes."

"Get in the machine already brat! I have better things to do than listen to you spout exposition." Porlyusica half shouted from the nearby control panel.

"Sorry Doc." He replied before taking off his shoes and laying down on the small bed.

She pressed a few buttons and the bed moved into the full body scanning machine. "Continue your conversation, I need to check the neurological patterns and make sure there is no damage in your brain."

"And here I thought you were sick of my exposition Doc?" Natsu joked with a grin clear in his voice.

"Don't test me Boy…"

Natsu chuckled as he stared at the cylindrical wall in front of his face. "As I was saying, you won't see any physical differences, but it still works, we become even stronger, faster, have a greater stamina, it expands our magic reservoirs greatly, and these are only a few of the things it does, it does have a curious side effect though, it unlocks a dormant natural talent. Take Mira for example, she can sing beautifully, even before the Enhancement, but after she had undergone the procedure, she gained the ability to perfectly replicate another's voice, male or female."

Lucy's jaw dropped as she stared in disbelief at the man in the machine. "Woah… do you have any other examples?"

"Erza, she is another one, she developed natural psionic powers, while yes one can learn telekinesis with magic, she can do it without the use of magic, which is extremely useful in situations where we are in MSFs, and even to this day she is learning new ways of using her psionics."

"What is yours?" Lucy asked curiously as she bent down to observe the man inside the tubular scanner.

"Reflex. Mine is reflex."

"That doesn't sound all that special Natsu…"

"I know but when I explain it you'll see why it is useful, but let me finish this, afterwards we can sit down for a coffee and talk some more." Natsu replied and went silent for the next five or so minutes, allowing various scans to be done on his body by the doctor.

* * *

**Cafeteria – Fairy Tail HQ**

The agent and his new protégé sat at a table, sitting in silences as they sip their respective drinks, coffee for him and tea for her.

Natsu's eyes were on an in-house newspaper that details the on-goings inside the Agency.

Lucy stared into her cup, half full of tea, as she tried to find a way to start a conversation with him, her eyes flicking up to the pinkette then to the paper in his hands and back to her drink. "What are you reading, Sir?"

"Just call me Natsu or Dragneel, we are both equals here, even though I am training you." He looks up from the paper and into her brown eyes. "You, me, Cana over there." He pointed with his mug at a brunette who is currently slumped over a table with a bottle of whiskey in her hand. "We are all equals, no matter our race, sex, abilities or rank."

"Race?" Lucy asked as she sat up fully. "What do you mean?"

Natsu smiled. "Well, for instance, there are a race called Exceed, they are a race of bipedal cats, I have an unofficially adopted son called Happy who is an Exceed, their whole race is gifted with magic and can use an ability known as Aera that allows them to manifest angelic wings that they fly with."

"Oh."

"And to answer your first question, this." He waves the paper slightly. "Is an in-house newspaper, Fairy News, it basically contains any news like new gear, any incidents, if any records have been broken, information of missions that have been completed, any events that are happening, chess or fight tournaments, for example, things people wish to sell, and much more."

Lucy watches him read the paper in shock, surprised that there is such a thing. "Who runs it?"

"It was a pet project of one of the Operatives, I can't remember who, but it caught steam and grew from a pet project to an actual approved thing, the old man even signed off on a department to run it, that's the new job of that person and by all accounts, they absolutely love it."

After a few moments, Natsu finishes his coffee then hands the paper to his protégé. "Here you go, I have one slated to go to my desk with each publication."

"Desk? You aren't just a field agent?"

"Ouch, that hurt, a lot…" Natsu said with a frown as he held his chest but his expression quickly turned into playful happiness. "Nah just kidding, I share an office with Mira, my handler, technically it's our desk."

"Oh." Lucy shook her head at his antics and looked around. "Where is Mira?"

"In her office most likely?"

"You mean your office?" Lucy said with a smirk.

Natsu laughed heartily at her comment. 'I'm starting to like her.' "Yes, my office, how could I forget?"

"Took to many punches to the head from that robot?" She continued.

"Oh, haha, now it sounds like it's personal." He smiled. "What was it you wanted to ask me back during the scans?"

"Oh, what did you mean by Reflex?"

Natsu leant forwards with his elbows on the table. "Firstly what you should know is that these abilities aren't unique to the person, another person can gain the ability themselves when they get enhanced, that being said mine is Reflex, in short it allows me to react to things effectively instantaneously, not only to things I see or hear, that my natural senses pick up, but also from sort of like and extra sense, it is like situational awareness on turbo-mega-ultra-steroids."

Lucy tilted her head then shook it at his choice of words. "I think I'll have to take your word for it and see it in action."

The pinkette shrugs and pulls out his phone to read his messages. "Looks like Lisanna went home, do you have a car or anything?"

"No, I never needed one." The blonde replied with a quiet voice.

Natsu's eyes narrowed as he could tell she wasn't giving him the whole truth, after a short pause for consideration he just shakes his head. "You know what, I don't want to know." He turns to leave the café. "Come on, we'll get you sorted out at the motor pool."

He leads the way to the nearest elevator and gets in. "Come, this is faster than walking to it, it is closer to the surface anyway, on our way there you can think about what vehicle you want."

Lucy got into the elevator and looked at the destination panel. "No numbers?"

"No, there are sectors and destinations, I just like to walk so I tend to not use these but in the sake of not wasting time." Natsu leaned past her and pressed the button for where he wanted them to go. "I won't bother explaining how these work beyond that they aren't your bog standard elevator so if you want to know more then ask Levy or Lisanna."

"O-ok…" She murmured back to him as her eyes fell to the floor.

"Before I forget, you also need to go to the Seamstress to be outfitted with gear, don't piss her off though, she'll jab you with a pin." Natsu rubbed his arm as he remembered the last time it happened, shaking his head he looked down at the blonde. "Per regulation, we are all meant to have fast vehicles to get to and from jobs or to here in emergencies. So whatever you pick doesn't have to be fast to begin with, we'll just make it fast. Pick what you think you'd be comfortable in."

Lucy's chocolate brown eyes slowly moved up her companion's leg and body, spotting a red emblem on his upper arm that she never noticed before. "That's your marker?" She said as she pointed her right hand at it, hers pink and on the back of her hand.

"Hmm? Oh yes, they'll only be visible under certain conditions, one being either here at HQ or at one of our safe houses, and the second is if a member uses a spell we all get taught on another, its to show whether it's actually them or someone impersonating them. Neat trick if you ask me."

After a few short moments, the doors open up, revealing a warehouse-like structure with car hoists and various cars and bikes, off to the left there is an open office where both administration and mechanics work together.

Natsu grinned as the woman slowly exited the elevator, looking around in awe at the various makes and models of cars, he put his hand on her back and walked forwards in an effort to hurry her up a little, causing her to stumble slightly and throw a glace and a casual "Ass." Back at him causing him to laugh and draw the attention of one of the mechanics.

"Oi! Agent Salamander!" A raven haired woman with an equally tanned skin tone called out as she walked over while cleaning her hands on a rag, she was dressed in a navy singlet and a pair of blue work pants. She stopped and smirked up at him as she reached the two agents. "What can do for you? Let me guess, trashed your car or bike street racing again?"

"No Ashlyn, I haven't crashed either in a few years ago, at least not when street racing." The pinkette replied with a chuckle. "Lucy, this is Ashlyn Everate. Head mechanic and a mad scientist when it comes to cars. Ash this is Lucy Heartfilia, our new agent codenamed Celeste."

"Agent Celeste eh?" The slightly taller woman said to the blonde as she gave her a long and calculating look up and down. "Nice to meet you, As Nitrous for brains here said, I'm the mad scientist and this…" She spread her arms and gestured to the workshop behind her. "Is my lab. Now I'd introduce you to my Frankenstein but it is currently in hotshot's garage here." She jabbed her thumb out towards Natsu but brought her hand forward to the blonde. "What can we do for you today?"

Lucy took her hand and shook it gently as she glanced around then back to the woman's maroon eyes. "I'm after a car…"

"Well of course you are, ya came here didn't you?!" Ashlyn said somewhat loudly to compensate for the background noise, throwing her hands up with a grin then resting them on her hips as she cocks them to the side, she gave Lucy another critical pass. "Hmm, your look makes me think you like to be showy."

Lucy bristled at this comment but stayed silent to allow the other woman to continue. "But~ I don't believe you want to be showy, you want to be understated correct?"

The blonde blinked her eyes rapidly at the correct assessment. "How…?

"Doll, I have seen many different people working for the FTA, people from all walks of life and from vastly different upbringings. So tell me, something would you like something plain, or something a little sporty, something small, maybe a coupe or convertible?"

"I… I would love a sporty convertible… nothing too over the top though."

The mechanic brought her hand to her chin and gently scratched her jaw in thought, she turned to Natsu with questioning eyes. "What do you think, Mazda MX5 hardtop, 13B from an RX7 FD?"

"Ooo… hmm, sounds good but~ I'd use the 26B four rotor engine instead of the 13B two rotor. While the 13 can sing and dance when asked, I think the raw power of its big brother would be better suited for our needs." Natsu said with a thoughtful nod, glancing around the workshop floor for a suitable car.

"She'll need training to handle that kind of power you know." Ash said as she pulled a pen and notepad from her back pocket, jotting down notes for the requested car.

"She'll get it, but make sure it is fully set up to handle it, wouldn't want it not being able to put the power down when it counts."

The mechanic just nods as she writes. "Come with me Agent Celeste and I'll show you what you will be driving." Without giving her time to respond, Ash walks along a line of cars that are covered by dust covers. "Say hotshot, is it true you jumped that poor bike into the back of a helicopter?"

"Yup, it's true, I was pulling Celeste out of a sticky situation, we were being chased along the highway when Eastwood and Osprey turned up, I jumped the bike off the ramps of a car transport truck and into the open cabin of the bird through the rear hatch."

"Fucking hell!" She whipped around quickly. "Ok I thought you were crazy before with some of the shit you have done, but that? Fuck… You gotta show me the tapes of that one."

Natsu waved a hand then dug into his pocket for his phone. "Lucy that is the car there." He said as he pointed with his free hand.

The blonde followed his finger to a covered car, gathering up one of the corners she carefully pulled the cover off, revealing a pristine Mazda MX5 RF, she gasped at the brilliant red and gently ran a hand over it as she admired the car.

"Well shit Salamander… I'm surprised the bike isn't fucked!" Ashlyn hollered a little later with a hearty laugh as she made her way to the other agent and clapped a hand to her back, causing her to almost jump out of her skin. "And you, you have to put up with him? I know he is good but damn, never a dull moment with him."

"I'll take that as a compliment thanks." Natsu said as he got a phone call.

"Yeah yeah! So Celeste, what do you think?"

Lucy looked over to the rowdy mechanic and smiled at her. "I love it, but will I be fine driving it?"

"As it is now, yes, once it is all set up though, well~ maybe." Ash replied with a shrug then pointed a finger at her. "It all depends on how well you can drive, but don't worry about that too much, you'll be taught how to handle the monsters I create."

"What will you do?"

"Well aside from putting an insane rotary engine in it, which will be twin-turbo and intercooled, I will be setting up the suspension and just making sure that it will be able to put the power down no matter what. Don't worry about the car, just focus on your training." The raven haired woman said as she placed her hand on the blonde's shoulder and smiled happily.

"Fuck!" Natsu shouted as he slammed his fist into the wall next to him. "Lucy you need to finish up here and go find Lisanna, I've just been informed by Erza that one of our fellow agents has been captured, the old man said that Gray, Erza and I are to meet up and make a rescue squad."

"Oh… ok…" Lucy said as she shied away from the situation a little as she watched the man turn and run out of the workshop.

"I wonder who is in trouble…" Ashlyn said quietly as she looked at the wall, her eyes tracing the cracks that spread out from the impact like a spider's web.

Moments later, Natsu sprinted down the hallways, hitting a contact on his phone to make a call. "Gray!"

"I know, I just got off the phone from Erza. We are meeting up in the armoury for a briefing, Makarov will be there too." The icy agent coolly responded through the phone, sounding like he too was sprinting down a hall.

"What happened to his squadmate?"

"According to Erza, Big Smoke made it out, he immediately called HQ on a secure line and told them what happened, how Ignatius got captured."

"I'm 5 min out, coming from the mechanics after taking the new girl there."

"I'm around the corner." Gray took a sharp intake of breath. "Just saw a flash of red, Erza just flew past the intersection ahead of me. See you soon!"

Natsu hung up his phone and picked up the pace, sprinting faster as he dodged the people in the hall with ease, after 3 minutes he arrives at the armoury and steps inside.

"Ah good, you're here. It's good to see you again Natsu." Said an assertive yet polite and mature voice.

Natsu grinned as he turned his head to the voice, seeing a beautiful woman with long scarlet hair, she wore black urban camo pants and combat boots with a black singlet, a black Kevlar vest was held in her right hand.

"Sup Erza. How was your mission?" He replied as he walked over to the slightly older agent and hugged her with an arm around her shoulders.

"Rough but successful, I heard yours was the same." Erza replied as she reciprocated the hug but after a moment she returned to the table in the centre of the room as she put on the armour.

"Yeah, cops were trigger happy and jumped the gun before I was off the ship, they alerted the slavers and I had to fight my way out." Natsu said with a nod as he turned to the weapon racks. "What's the situation calling for?"

"Heavy assault, you agents are to storm the compound that the captured agent is being held at, I've ordered Wakaba to fall back to the safe house." Makarov said, announcing his arrival and beginning the briefing.

Natsu sighs and walks to the centre table. "Macao what have you gotten yourself into this time…"

* * *

**That's another chapter done and dusted, thanks for reading and please remember to leave a review and follow/favourite. Peace and chicken grease! I'll see you all next time.**


	7. Chapter 7

**Just to refresh everyone's memories, "COMM:" denotes a silent conversation between the agents, this is enabled by the special microphones they use attached to their throats, so while they may be talking to each other, the people nearby won't be able to hear them unless they hack into the FTA communications.**

**Line breaks are a hard cut, changing scenes.**

**0-0-0-0-0 are a soft cut, changing perspectives.**

* * *

The three agents gathered around the table in the centre of the room as the Director stood on top of it.

He activated the holographic projector built into the table, it expanded from the centre and grew to reveal a small rundown military compound. "We have a drone circling the area providing the intel I am showing you, it will also be connected to your HUDs for up-to-date intel on hostile movements."

The old man looked around at his agents. "From what we can tell there are over 30 hostile personal at this base, this is only counting those we have seen patrolling, moving from building to building or doing jobs around the base itself. We are being pinged by Big Smoke's Tac-com from this concrete command centre here." He pointed to a three-story reinforced bunker-like command building. "Exact positioning is unknown so you will have to search and clear the building."

"Where is the staging area, Sir?" Erza asked as she examined the hologram.

"We will be dropping you three off, behind a nearby hill, here." He zoomed out the hologram and showed the trio the drop zone. "You will be HALO jumping in, we can't risk the helicopter being seen or heard for a traditional drop off so we have only a few options left. And since this is a night op, the sound would travel greater distances."

"Here." Natsu pointed to a clearing behind the hill. "That will be the Landing Zone. Have the drone fire an I.R. strobe to mark the area for us so we don't lose track of it."

"I'll let the drone operator know as soon as you three are on the way." Makarov said as he nodded in agreement. "Now I'll leave you all to work out a plan of attack, you have an Osprey fuelled up and waiting for you in the hanger."

"Rodger that Sir." Gray replied as he turned from the hologram and went back to picking out some weapons.

The old man left the armoury, he bumped into Levy in the doorway and took a step back to allow her entrance.

"Thank you, Director." Levy gave the man a nod, a long weapon's bag slung over her shoulder.

"Agent." He gave her a nod back and left the room.

"How can we help you Levy?" Erza asked the shorter woman, watching as she made her way over to the pinkette.

"I've been working on a prototype in my spare time, Natsu." She placed the bag on the table and looked up at the man. "This is for you to test out, when the information crossed my desk I knew that it was the perfect time for field testing."

The pink-haired agent looked at the blunette and pointed to the bag. "So what have you got for me?"

"This is my baby, Sayna, meaning "one who is silent"." She opened the bag and revealed an unusual bullpup bolt-action sniper rifle. "It is a prototype man-portable railgun."

"Oh ho~." The man rubbed his hands together, eager to use the new weapon. "Give me the run down Lev."

The other two agents watched the exchange, their interest gained as they listen to her explanation.

"So to make it work I have utilised a miniature fusion reactor, a bank of small but extremely powerful and efficient capacitors and an integrated pancake thyristor to prevent refeeding of the capacitors during firing, it has a pulse network set up to efficiently make use of the charge from the capacitors, so it doesn't weld the bullet to the rails." Levy said, rattling off scientific information without taking a breath. "The bullets complete the circuit with the help of a liquid metal sabot, but this sabot is held against the rails and not the actual bullet itself."

"Levy, as interesting as the tech talk is, can we speed this up?" Erza asked the scientist that was their Head of Information.

"I'm getting there, I'm getting there. Anyway there are three enchantments placed on the railgun itself, two on the rails and one on the bolt itself." The blunette continued, not really caring about the bulk of information. "There is an enchantment that strengthens the rails, preventing warping of the highly conductive metal under firing, another that holds the liquid metal sabot against the rails, preventing it from leaving the gun when fired, and finally the one on the bolt, it interacts with the bullet, creating a small vacuum around the bullet while it is in the chamber and also while in flight to its target, this removes the massive force against it from wind resistance, meaning less bullet drop even at the high speeds it will travel at, it also has the added bonus of making the bullet silent, there is no crack from the bullet breaking the sound barrier, hence the name of the gun."

"Is that all the science out of the way Lev?" Natsu asked as he admired the rifle.

"Yes, there is the safety, it locks the trigger and is right here." She points to the grip, a little back and above the trigger housing. "Both sides for ambidextrous shooting and it uses a straight-pull bolt, just have to unscrew the handle and put it on the other side."

Natsu picked up the rifle and aimed it down the length of the room. "Bullets?"

"Right here." She takes a pouch from her belt and places it on the table. "It is based on the .338 Lapua Magnum bullet, without the case of course, the overall size is 8.6x70mm." She takes one out and hands it to the agent.

"Drop it in and slide the bolt shut?"

"Just like normal." She replies with a nod. "The bullet is made from a high-density ferric alloy, highly conductive but is still a viable projectile thanks to the density, soft targets like people will just explode like a watermelon, while hard targets will be penetrated with ease, just like Mira the other night when you took her to bed."

Natsu smirked at the cheeky woman and gently cuffed her over the back of the head playfully. "Oi~, none of that. Nothing else I need to know?"

The blunette smirks playfully and points to the muzzle. "This end makes people vanish into thin air."

Natsu chuckled and placed the rifle on the table, the bipod down. "Noted, thanks Levy, I'll give her a good testing."

"Alright, I'll see you three when you get back, happy hunting." The Archivist turned and left the room, leaving the three in silence for a few moments until Erza spoke up.

"We need to finish getting our shit together."

"Noted." Natsu replied, he put the rifle down on the table and started getting into assault armour. "What's the plan?"

"Well now that you have that rifle, I want you up on the hill, you will be taking out targets of opportunity for us, hopefully allowing us to reach the command building without being spotted." She picked up an e-pen and put a pink dot up on the hill, then drew a red and a blue line coming from the hill and to the fence of the base. "You are to stay there and provide cover, hit the people in the watchtowers before we arrive, but make sure the bodies won't be seen."

"Gotcha." The agent responded as he moved back to the table and attached the pouch with the railgun slugs onto his belt.

The scarlet-haired agent put pink Xs on the watchtowers. "Once they are down I want you to make sure no one goes up to the towers, last thing we need is to trip an alarm and alert them to the rescue op, they will possibly kill our agent if that happens."

"What is the route you two will be taking? I'll need to know so I can eliminate anyone who is about to detect you."

Gray took the e-pen from the woman and drew a blue line from the fence, around the backs of some buildings and to the rear entrance of the command building. "I think this is the best path, keeps us out of sight, and Natsu can pick off any hostiles without needing to change positions."

"Hmm…" Agent Knight muttered to herself as she examined the route, watching the patrols from the live feed. "I agree, this seems like a suitable plan, Gray grab an SMG, suppressed and subsonic, for infiltration, and something big, assault rifle or shotgun, for the exfiltration. Natsu I need you with either an assault rifle, DMR, or a shotgun, if we need backup in the building I want you to come in loud, draw attention away from us."

Gray grabbed down a Mossberg 590 Tactical shotgun, he loaded it up and filled a pouch with ammo for it before placing the weapon on his back and moving over to the SMG wall, he grabbed down an H&K MP5SD3.

Natsu attached the railgun onto his back and grabbed himself an FN MK 17 CQC, he attached an ACOG sight on it with a cantered holo sight for when he is moving through buildings.

"Once we have our man secured, we are to move out to this open area here." Erza said as she put a green circle at the area in front of the motor pool. "That's out Evac zone, we call for the Osprey to come in and get us out of dodge, there is a high chance that it will be a hot zone so be ready for a firefight."

"All set here, just waiting on you Knight." Gray said as he made his way back to the table.

"Likewise." The pinkette added as he moved back to his spot on the opposite side of the table.

Erza quickly grabbed a Beowulf assault rifle and a Benelli M4, she planned on using her suppressed Beretta Px4 45ACP pistol during the infiltration. "Everyone understands the briefing?"

Both Natsu and Gray give the scarlet agent a nod and respond with an "Affirmative."

The trio made their way out of the armoury and headed down the hallways, making their way to the hanger bay and turning heads along the way, the only time these three agents were seen geared up to this degree, and working together on an operation, was when something big was happening, word started spreading like wildfire.

The members of the Fairy Tail Agency, staff, operatives and agents, bade them good luck and saluted the trio as they passed.

As the trio entered the hanger bay where their ride is waiting for them, their comms came to life with the familiar voice of Natsu's handler.

COMM: "Agents, It's Demon here, I'll be your handler tonight, I have your feeds up on my screens and will provide tech support."

COMM: "Good to hear M." Agent Salamander replied as the Agents boarded the helicopter through the rear hatch.

A voice spoke through the Osprey's intercom. "Agents, I'm Keira Metz, the pilot of Echo Four. The Director briefed me on the plan so I have had your HALO gear stocked in the boxes near the front of the cabin back there, standard routine."

"Get the gear on and hooked up to O2 ASAP." Agent Knight ordered as she took out her gear and started putting it on, followed by the other two agents, in moments the Tilt-rotor helicopter was in the air and the agents were standing around in the back. "When we touch down I want both of you to requip the HALO equipment away instead of removing it manually, we don't have the time or luxury to come back for it otherwise."

"Gotcha." Salamander responded as Frosty gave a silent nod.

* * *

**One Hour Later, Skies Above Fiore**

"We're approaching the drop zone." Came Keira's voice over the intercom. "You are cleared to jump on the green light."

Agent Knight moved to stand in front of the rear hatch, her back to it as it lowers. "This is it you two, we know the plan, all that is left is to get our man out of there."

COMM: "We expect him to be in bad shape and have a medical team ready for your return." M informed the team. "I'm sending you the live feed from the drone, top right of your HUDs should have a map with the locations of known hostiles, on top of this all hostiles will be outlined in red, but only for the ones visible to the drone, the rest you'll have to mark manually."

"Ten seconds to drop." Came the pilot's voice.

The agents lined up at the open hatch, looking out at the dark sky and howling wind, Frosty spoke up. "See you on the ground."

"3… 2… 1… Light is green and you are clear to jump."

All three agents jumped out of the back of the Osprey in unison, they pivoted forward until they were in a nosedive, racing towards the ground at breakneck speeds.

COMM: "LZ ten degrees north, I have visual on the strobe." Agent Salamander called out, he adjusted his angle and led the way to the clearing.

COMM: "Wind is strong tonight, careful of the gusts, they'll throw you off course." Knight responded, her voice calm and her tone level, her mind in absolute focus.

A strong gust of wind hit them, knocking them off course as it buffeted against them, Salamander's voice came over the comms again. "Change direction, 15 degrees south by south-west, we are approaching chute height."

The three agents could see the I.R. strobe that marked the LZ, it blinked away on their night vision given by their contacts, after a few moments it was time to pull their parachutes.

In seconds and in near-perfect unison, three pitch-black parachutes erupted from their bags, snapping the agents upright and slowing them down considerably, letting them land safely in the clearing.

The trio collected up the chutes and put them back into their packs, they then all requipped them away and knelt down in a triangle, facing each other.

Salamander shut off the I.R. beacon and set the small self-destruction warhead to detonate in an hour. "Ok, the hill is to our north, the base is half a click to the northeast from the firing position on the hill, you two ready for a hike?"

"Born ready, let's get a move on." Frosty said as he started trudging up the hill.

"He was on a date when he got the call…" Knight said as she and Salamander watched their fellow agent. "Wasn't happy but when he heard what had happened, let's just say he was sufficiently motivated."

"We should hurry, the longer we take the time to talk, the worse Ignatius' condition could get." Salamander said to the scarlet-haired agent and jogged up the hill.

After a handful of minutes, the trio had reached the top of the hill, they now had a clear view of what they are up against.

"Looks like a small army of them, should I take out the stragglers?" Salamander asked as he glanced around for a nice vantage point.

"Yes, but make sure they aren't found as per usual. Frosty and I will make our way down to the fence, I'd suggest setting up on that rocky outcrop there." Knight said as she pointed to where she wants him.

"On my way. I'll keep an eye out." He replied as he walked to the outcrop, taking the railgun sniper rifle off of his back and getting into a prone position with it.

"Let's go Knight, we have a job to do." The raven-haired agent said as he motioned her to follow as he started to walk down the hill, after about ten or so minutes the duo reaches the fence line and lie down in a ditch just before it so they don't get seen.

COMM: "Knight to Salamander, we are in position, you are cleared to fire."

The redhead watches as the red outlines of the hostiles in the watchtowers fall to the floor and fade away, their sniper silently taking them out.

COMM: "You two are clear, move on, I'll warn you of any trouble if I can't take it out." Agent Salamander said as he shifted his aim, slowly sweeping it around the base so as to make sure the bodies aren't found.

Agent Knight silently gestured to her fellow agent, silently telling him to follow her as she draws her suppressed Px4 and takes point.

The two agents move up to the fence and Frosty takes out a pair of wire cutters, he cuts an inverted T into the wire as quietly as he can, the quiet clicks of the wire being cut being amplified by the dense night air.

COMM: "We're through." He announced as he opened the gap in the wire, letting the scarlet agent in first before following her closely, he closed the gap behind him.

COMM: "Any sign of an MSF?" Agent Salamander asked as he moved the scope so his teammates were in view.

COMM: "I don't feel any different, so either it isn't active, or there isn't one to begin with." Knight replied to the pinkette.

Knight and Frosty slipped behind the nearby building and slowly made their way along it, they kept their heads down below the windowsills just in case someone was looking out of one, Frosty put a hand on Knight's shoulder to stop her from going around the next corner as he saw a blip on his map coming their way.

The guard was whistling a tune as he patrolled, he was feeling lucky after winning a dozen rounds of poker with the other guards, he cleaned them out and scored some new trinkets, like a gold watch, some even bet some of their duties, so after the night is over he will have free time. He turned the corner and came face to face with a redheaded woman. "Huh, you're not meant to be here… oh fuck… ALA…!" The last thing that went through his mind was the woman getting further and further away as his vision faded to black rapidly.

COMM: "Tango down." Said Salamander, the shot that he had fired had hit the man in the centre of the chest, due to the impact of the round hitting him the guards chest exploded in a shower of blood and gore, leaving nothing left but the lower abdomen and legs as they fell to the ground, his arms were knocked off to the side and his head flew over the fence.

COMM: "Aim for the head next time, less mess that way." Knight replied, wiping some of the blood off of her face.

COMM: "It was last second, as soon as I heard him I snapped across and took the shot, any longer and he would have alerted the compound."

COMM: "Thanks, just saved us the hassle. Proceeding with the mission." She said as she stepped around the corner with the raven-haired male behind her.

The two agents passed behind buildings and vehicles, making sure to keep out of cover as little as possible so they won't get seen.

**0-0-0-0-0-0**

Salamander's rifle slowly moves about, his sights set on anyone unfortunate enough to wander away from the eyes of others, the dragon spotted some prey move behind a building. He had unzipped his pants and started to take a leak into a bush.

The agent's breaths were slow and steady, his sharp eyes on his target, with a gentle pull of the trigger, the man's head exploded, blood spurted from the dead man's neck as he fell back, coving himself in piss as his blood showers the wall of the building.

Moving slightly, the agent shifted his aim to another target, she was making her way up one of the watchtowers, a threat to the mission if she spots the body at the top, the agent quickly adjusted the small dial on the rifle, compensating for over penetration as he took aim, the woman entered the top of the tower just as her head vanished from her shoulders and she fell down out of sight.

COMM: "Salamander, we have two guards by the door to the command building, can you do anything about them?" Frosty asked as he and Knight were crouched behind a vehicle by the rear entrance.

COMM: "M, do you have any ideas, I can't see anything on this side that won't set the alarms off." The cherry haired agent asked his handler as he scanned his eyes over the base.

Agent Demon looked over her screens, searching for a good distraction, she zooms in the drone feed and finds an external generator. "This must be the base's power supply…" She mutters as she highlights it for the agents.

COMM: "Sal, move to the right a few hundred metres, you should get a view of the base generator, hit it with your railgun and it should kill all power in the base, that should give Knight and Frosty the chance to slip into the building."

COMM: "Copy that M, moving out." The agent replied as he got up from his position, he ran through the trees and knee-high grass until he reaches a more suitable position.

**0-0-0-0-0-0**

Frosty leaned towards Knight's ear and spoke softly, making sure they weren't overheard. "Where do you think he would be? Basement or upper levels?"

"We won't know for sure until we get in there and start searching." Knight replied to the agent with a glance over her shoulder.

"We could nab someone and interrogate them, find out where he is that way."

"Good idea."

COMM: "In position, it's time to say goodnight in 3… 2… 1…" The lights went out, bathing the entire base in darkness.

The guards by the door look at the light above them. "The fuck just happened?"

"I don't know." The second guard responded as she flicked the switch off and on again. "Generator probably fucked itself again, probably should either head inside or something, can't see shit now."

"Wanna game of billiards?"

"Hmm, sure, anything is better than this fucking shit."

The two guards headed inside, leaving their post and practically leaving the door wide open for the hidden agents to pass through.

COMM: "We're moving in, Salamander, it may pay for you to make your way into the compound and meet up with us in the building. We could use the help to find Ignatius." Said Knight as she and Frosty made their way through the rear entrance silently.

She swept the hallway with her pistol as she entered and moved to the left while staying low to let the raven-haired agent in behind her. He flicked his SMG up and stood tall as he checked the right side of the hallway.

COMM: "On me." Knight ordered as she rose up and made her way down the left of the hall, her eyes scanned the area in front of her for any hostiles as he held her Px4 ready to eliminate them.

**0-0-0-0-0-0**

Agent Salamander reached the fence and slipped through the hole that the other two agents had made, he drew his Glock 20 and pulled out an all back combat knife from its sheath on his left thigh, he made his way along the same path his fellow agents took.

As he approaches the body of the guard he shot in the chest earlier, he hears a voice calling out behind him.

"Hey Mark, where did you go?" The guard called out, she was looking for the man named Mark whom Salamander could only guess was the body at his feet. He quickly spun on his heels to face her.

The guard saw the cherry-haired agent and brought up her shotgun. "Who are yo…" There was a flash of black steel glinting in the torch attached to her shotgun, the knife was thrown by Salamander and became imbedded into the woman's skull, landing between the eyes. The point was sticking out of the base of her skull at the back of her head, she died instantly as she fell to the ground silently.

COMM: "Knight, Frosty, I think they are onto us, they are starting to search for their missing patrols. I just took one down by the building near the entrance point in the fence." He informed his fellow agents as he made his way to the new body, he pulled out the knife and knelt by the body, cleaning the blade on the clothing.

COMM: "We have to move up the timetable it seems, get here ASAP, when you get to the rear exit, turn left in the hall and go forty metres left, we are in an office belonging to "Ai Sochi"." Knight replied.

The man sighed quietly, he turned away from the new body and broke out into a near-silent run.

It didn't take him long to reach the command building, he rolled, vaulted and dived in and over cover, expertly navigating obstacles as he only just manages to avoid detection.

Unfortunately, once he reached the command centre and entered it, his luck ran dry, between him and his teammates were a pair of guards. "Ah fuck…"

"What the fuck! Open Fire!" One of the two guards shouted as they both raised their M416 assault rifles.

Salamander's eyesight sharpened as his enhanced body primed itself for a large burst of speed and thanks to his Reflex ability the time started to slow down as his mind went into overdrive, processing everything insanely fast.

The guards opened fire with their full-auto rifles, aiming at where the man is… only he wasn't there anymore, the man became a black and pink blur and in less than a second he had made up half the distance between them.

"OH FUCK IT'S AN AGENT!" One of the guards shouted in fear as he dropped his rifle and tried to turn and run away, only be stopped mid-turn by a blade sliding right through his neck, separating his head from his shoulders.

The other guard was slammed against the wall with the same knife pressed to their throat. "Wha… What do you want?!"

Salamander's body quickly fell back into its normal operations as he stared the guard in the eyes, making them sweat nervously, the body of their fellow guard hitting the floor behind the agent. "You have a good friend of mine somewhere on this base and I want to know where he is."

A door opened nearby and outstepped a raven-haired man, it was his fellow agent, Frosty. "Gods Damn It Salamander. You probably just alerted the base."

The guard panicked as two more agents made themselves known to him, he watched a redheaded woman come out after the man, but what made him panic most was the moniker Salamander.

"While I agree with Frost, we need to get Ignatius' location. So Salamander, get us that info, we will stand guard." Said Knight, taking command of the situation as she took the Beowulf off of her back.

"How about you make it easy on us, tell us where our friend is being kept and you won't end up like your pal behind me." The pinkette ordered harshly, he pointed at the decapitated body with his combat knife.

The guard swallowed thickly, his eyes on the pooling blood then they move to the knife and finally on the dead-serious eyes of the agent. "B…b…basement l…level 2."

"That wasn't so hard now was it?" The man let the guard down who dropped to his knees then onto his side on the floor. "Time to go."

Agent Frost squatted down beside the man. "Now ordinarily we'd tranq you, but since we are kitted out for an assault, we'll have to leave you in good faith, I'd advise you to run for your life, get off base, or get out of our sight and hide somewhere, because if we catch you, and if we find out that you have warned the others… well, standard orders are no loose ends…"

The man passed out, he fainted from the amount of fear and panic that was burning through his body, leaving him out cold on the floor, Knight walked over to the cold agent. "I think you two overdid it, but at least it solves the problem of what to do with him."

The three agents started moving to the stairway to the basement, now united again, Salamander turned to the raven-haired man. "No loose ends?"

"Had to say something, what's better than a threat to make sure he doesn't tell the others."

"You just wanted to sound cool." Said the pinkette with a smirk.

"Bitch I am cool." Frosty replied.

"Ice cold." Knight chimed in with a tiny smirk of her stony business-like face and mirth lighting up her eyes.

COMM: "Can the chatter you three, we still have a job to do." Agent Demon's voice spoke in their ears, followed by a badly contained giggle breaking its way through her serious tone. "Don't give them the cold shoulder just yet Frosty."

The agent grumbled softly to himself as they made their way down the stairs to the second level of the basement.

It was quiet… too quiet… The three agents broke out into a run with Salamander leading the way, his nose picking up the scent of Ignatius. "I don't like this, something smells off about this whole situation."

"What do you mean?" Knight asked the man, she had her shotgun out for close quarters as they ran down hallways.

"It reeks of Phantoms." Sal said as he came to a stop in front of a door, he lowered his voice and pointed to it. "Shotguns out, standard breach and clear."

Knight and Frosty held their shotguns at the ready, standing close to the wall beside the door, in position opposite the other.

The pinkette counted down from five on his hand, when his hand closed into a fist he reached down and drew both his Glock 20 and 29. The man brought his boot up and gave the door a heavy kick, busting it open.

Knight stepped into the room, coming from the left and sweeping from middle to the right, Agent Frost followed her in, taking middle to left with the pink-haired man bringing up the rear.

COMM: "M, this is Sal, we have eyes on Agent Ignatius, condition unknown."

COMM: "Clear the room, Sal, check the agent. Agent Frost, I want you to watch the door. Knight, you need to check the room for any surprises." Agent Demon responded.

They all went about their tasks, Salamander moved to the agent who was tied to a chair, arms to the armrests and legs to the front legs of the chair. He holstered his pistols and started checking his vital signs. "Pulse is weak but it is there. He is breathing too, shallow and laboured though."

He gently lifted Ignatius' eyelids and flashed a light into them. "Unresponsive, drugged most likely. If they wanted information then they wouldn't have used force to knock him out, which would have damaged the brain."

He checked the man's arms, putting as little pressure on them as possible. "Both bones in the left forearm are broken, probably a pipe or something similar, all of his fingernails have been ripped off. There are also shallow cuts along his arm, they look scarred already, probably done with a hot knife. The right shoulder is dislocated."

Salamander opened up Ignatius shirt, cutting it down the middle with his knife. "Heavy bruising of the ribs. Heavy discolouration in certain spots, broken and cracked ribs, there are fist-sized marks. More cauterised lacerations on his chest."

The pinkette moved behind the man, seeing that the back had been removed from the chair. "Shirt is shredded, torn as if by some kind of whip? Had to have sharp metal on the edges to cause this kind of damage. I see shallow cuts on his back, dried blood around them, shallow again, seems to be like they wanted to implement as much pain as possible…"

He gently pressed down on the man's thighs, he felt nothing out of place or move at all but he did see that Ignatius flinched slightly as if he was in pain. "No visible damage on the thighs, I don't feel a broken femur at all, most likely heavy bruising, there is a possible dislocation at the hip."

He worked his way down the legs. "Knees are fine. Left tibia is broken, two places, make that three places. The fibula is fine on the left side, right tibia is undamaged, most likely bruised though, right fibula is broke, two places but a fair distance between breaks, they must have been from individual strikes."

"Feet are swollen, shoes were removed at some point, heavy discolouration on the top of the right foot, I'd say it is broken. Left seems to be in better condition, definitely blunt force trauma, hammer maybe?"

The man looked up at his fellow agents. "This wasn't just an integration, this was straight-up torture. He might make it back to HQ, I'm not sure… His body seems ready to check out at any moment."

Knight came over and requipped a stretcher next to Salamander. "Put him on that, we have to get him onto Echo Four as soon as possible and get the fuck out of here." She left him to sort out the heavily injured agent as she walked a little further away.

COMM: "Agent Knight to Command, does that drone above us have any missiles?"

…

COMM: "Agent Knight to Command! Agent Demon can you hear me?"

COMM: "Yes, I hear you Knight, that drone is armed with missiles and guided bombs, what would you like done with it?"

COMM: "Rain Hell."

…

COMM: "Agent… Erza…"

COMM: "DO IT! We don't have time for a firefight Mira!"

COMM: "Affirmative… Providing fire support."

"Stretcher is set! We gotta move!" Salamander said as he took point, drawing his MK 17 CQC and exiting the room, Frosty followed him out with Knight behind them, she was using her psionic abilities to levitate the stretcher, allowing them all to be able to fight at full strength.

The three agents sprinted down the hall with their guns at the ready, no longer worrying about stealth as they all had loud weapons and were ready to open fire at the first sight of trouble.

**BOOM**

The building shook as one of the guided bombs landed on the motor pool, destroying the vehicles inside and setting off the fuel stores, causing successive blasts and setting off the base's alarms.

"Keep moving!" Salamander shouted as they ran up the stairs, not missing a single step.

**BOOM**

Another explosion rocked the building, this was accompanied by smaller blasts from missile strikes hitting precisely targeted groups of hostiles.

COMM: "Echo Four to ground team, we are deploying our gun turret and are coming in to assist."

COMM: "Appreciate the help, Echo Four." Frosty replied as the agents reached the ground floor, they turned to head to the rear entrance, hoping that it would be undefended.

Bombs and missiles continued to fall on the base, causing havoc and death as they blew apart buildings, vehicles and people.

A group of guards were running through the building, they were ordered to check on the prisoner, they turned the corner and spotted the agents, one of them shouts to direct the group. "There! Intruders! OPEN FIRE!"

The group all fired upon them, their aim was shaky from the explosions, the fear and adrenaline running through their veins, a few got some lucky hits on the agents but unfortunately for them, the agents' armour soaked up the damage, leaving them unscathed.

Salamander snapped his rifle's holo-sight up to his eyes, he quickly found his targets and let loose seven quick but precise trigger pulls, each bullet finding a home in the skulls of the seven guards who had open fired on them. "How's Ignatius?!"

"He wasn't hit!" The scarlet-haired agent responded, keeping the stretcher off the ground and mobile with her enhanced abilities.

Sal nodded his head as he burst out the back door, sweeping to the left as Frost checked the right. "Let's keep moving!"

COMM: "Coming in hot!" Echo Four called out as they flew by, they rotated the engine pods and spun around, a roar ripped through the dense night air as bullets flew out of the belly-mounted minigun.

Tracers lit up the night sky, along with the bombs and missiles dropped by the drone.

Salamander hugged the corner of the command building, his rifle raised as he took pot-shots at any heads that came into view of his scope. "Knight, cover our rear with that Beowulf, make sure no one comes out of that doorway!"

"Rodger!" She switched weapons and turned, holding her .50 cal assault rifle and aims it back down the building.

"We're moving to where we made that hole in the fence, Frost, you go first followed by Knight and the stretcher, I'll cover you then bring up the rear. On three got it!?" Salamander ordered as he reloaded his rifle, hearing confirmation from his teammates he levels his rifle with the enemies again. "Three… Two… One… GO!"

Both the agents made a break for the next building, the raven-haired man spotted a guard coming out of cover in front of them and he gave the guard a blast of his shotgun, taking off the top of their head. Frost swung his muzzle around and checked the cover, he puts two more blasts of buckshot into the two remaining hostiles as Knight continues ahead.

The pinkette turned and started running for the next set of cover as Frost beckons to him from the next building, the three agents met up and made their way around the building. The got into position behind the Osprey and out of the line of fire.

COMM: "Agent Frost to Echo Four, we are right behind you. Once it is safe, land and we'll board!"

COMM: "Zone is too hot to land, we need our belly turret. There is a transport truck to our right, we'll open the rear hatch and move in front of it, try and use it to get on board."

The helicopter drifted to the right while the minigun kept the hostiles pinned down, once in position they opened the rear hatch so the agents could board the Osprey.

"Let's move!" Sal ordered as he put his rifle on his back and climbed onto the back of the transport truck. "We need to get out of here ASAP, especially if they have an RPG somewhere!"

The other two agents mounted the truck and Knight sent the stretcher up into the back of the waiting helicopter. "Salamander, get up there and guide him to a bench!"

The pinkette climbed up onto the cab of the truck and leapt into the cabin of Echo Four, he took a hold of the stretcher and carefully moved it to one of the side benches and lowered it down onto them. "Ok, you are good to release him!"

The man hurried back to the rear hatch and helped his fellow agents on board, catching their hand just in case they slip and fall, Knight ran up to the pilots. "We're all in, get us out of here."

"Don't need to tell us twice." Keira said as she took them up and away from the base.

Agent Salamander stood by the rear hatch, watching the tracers chase after them as the door slowly closed. "How does he look, Frost?"

The raven-haired man looked over at his friend, surprised at the use of his actual codename that he had changed it to as a compromise, instead of the nickname, he looked back down at Ignatius. "FUBAR, seriously, I am having serious doubts that he will make it home."

Alarms blared from the instruments, warning the pilots of danger, Keira turns to the co-pilot. "Fucking Heat Seekers! Kai hit those flares!" She put the tilt-rotor helicopter into a hard bank and pulled back on the flight controls, performing evasive manoeuvres.

"Got it!" The co-pilot replied as he reached forward and hit a button to deploy the countermeasure, but the alarm didn't turn off, a quick look out the window and the pilots saw the missile turn and continue to chase them down.

"Must be radar-guided, firing chaff." Kai said as he hit another button.

The missile lost its lock and flew past them, harmlessly exploding a few dozen metres in front of the Osprey.

"I think we are in the green now. Returning to HQ." Keira announced to the occupants of the helicopter as she inputs waypoints leading them back to Magnolia airspace into the autopilot. "You agents sit down and relax, we'll be there in no time."

* * *

**Well, that is another chapter done and dusted, I hope you enjoyed it, follow, fav and review if you like, I appreciate everyone's feedback. In the previous chapter Natsu and Lisanna told Lucy about the time they were captured, I have gone into more detail with this over in Continued Life of a Dragonslayer chapter 9 "Mira's Madness", some of you may have come from that story and saw that segment I am talking about, if you haven't seen it the part where it happens is about 2/3s to 3/4s of the way through the chapter, look for the "Unknown Location, Universe 8562-Z." this marks the beginning of what happens to Agent Salamander and Agent Soul.**

**That is all for today, I hope you liked the chapter and I'll see you all next time.**


	8. Chapter 8

**Magnolia Airspace**

The Osprey soared through the skies above the city, agents safely on-board and almost home. "FTA Tower, this is Echo Four Four, we are on final approach, have a medical team waiting for us on the pad."

A red-haired woman stood in the door to the cockpit, she was looking out the windows at the city lights, her professional side slowly ebbing away as her longing for a warm bed and a good night's sleep build.

She turned and makes her way towards her pink-haired companion, he was seated opposite their injured friend. "Natsu."

"Hmm?" The man tore his eyes away from the broken body and turned his attention to the woman. "What's up Erza?

"How is Macao?"

"His condition is deteriorating, I've had to sedate him. He woke up not long ago…" He said as he rose from the seat, he ran a tired hand through his pink locks.

"Why didn't you let me know?" She asked, a frown spreading across her face as she glanced down at the heavily wounded agent.

"Sorry, Erz, had my hands full with him." The pinkette said as he picked up a notepad, it contained written notes that detailed Macao's condition. "When he woke up, all the pain from his injuries hit him like a freight train, had to put him back under before he caused more damage to his already weak body."

"I… didn't hear it…" Erza held her hand out for the notepad, wanting to see how bad it really is. "What happened?"

"Short story is when he woke up, his heart rate went through the roof, he was screaming his lungs out but there was no sound coming out." The man knelt down beside the older male. "He started straining against his restraints, he caused some more damage to himself before I managed to get him to sleep again."

"What kind of damage are we talking about?" The redhead glanced at the third agent on the aircraft, the raven-haired man sat a little further away and was cleaning his equipment, and sorting out the HALO gear.

"Opened up some of the cuts, further damaged the already broken bones, I've had to relocate them again, and he also re-dislocated his shoulder after I had put both it and his hip back into position…" Natsu turned his attention from the man with dark blue hair and looked up at the other agent. "He strained his heart even further, I'm afraid that he has damaged it more as it doesn't sound as strong as when we found him."

"Will he make it back to base?" Asked Erza in a morose tone as she placed a hand on the pinkette's shoulder.

"Maybe, we aren't that far away now, but the thing is… how long will he last, even in medical care?" He stood up, his dark green eyes looking into Erza's brown orbs. "Best case is he comes through and makes a full recovery in maybe a year and that is including rehab. Worse yet is he could be comatose for kami knows how long…"

Erza lets out a sad sigh, tears threatening to leak from her eyes as she gently embraced the pinkette in a hug. "And the worst case?"

"That goes without saying Erz…" The man rubbed his hand on her back, trying to soothe her. "The worst case is he dies, either here on the helicopter, on the way to the hospital, or in bed at some time in the near future…"

Thump-thump. Came the gentle sounds of Macao's heart, the pinkette had his ears trained on the soft beats.

"How far out are we?" Natsu asked the woman in his arms.

"A few minutes." She replied, soaking in the warmth of the man, it was helping her soothe her body and mind. "Ten at most until touch down, then we have the short trip into the base with the lift."

Thump-thump.

"Gotta, let's sit down." The agent said as he gently guided his friend to a seat, letting her keep her arms around him as they sat next to each other.

COMM: "Agents, we have received word that a medical team is waiting for us at the bottom of the elevator." The pilot Keira's voice said, coming through their commlinks.

Thump-thump.

COMM: "ETA is roughly 12 minutes."

COMM: "Copy that Echo Four Four, we are almost home." Natsu replied.

"Good, I'm busting for a piss." Gray called out as he stood and stretched his legs, walking the length of the cabin.

"Open the hatch and piss out the back then." Replied the pinkette as he waved a hand to the end of the Osprey.

"I can wait." The agent said with a shrug of his shoulders. "I need to go but not That badly."

Thump-thump.

"Whatever you say, man."

"Gray it is probably best if you do it now, better than needing to do it when we are above HQ or going down the elevator. I'd rather not slip on your piss." Erza stated sternly as she let go of the man finally.

"Fine fine, I guess you are right." He replied as he moved to the rear hatch and opened it.

"I feel sorry for those down on the roads below, might be thinking that it is starting to spit rain." Natsu said with a smirk spread across his face.

The redhead just shrugged at the comment. "He isn't the only one that needs to use the bathroom, but I can wait, it isn't my primary concern right now."

The sound of a zipper reaches their ears, followed by a satisfied groan. "Oi do you two want to come for some takeaway once we land?"

"What kinda food we talking about?" Natsu asked the icy agent.

He looked over his shoulder at the other two agents and shrugged. "I was thinking something like fish and chips or head to a noodle bar."

Thump-thump.

COMM: "Five minutes to touchdown."

"I haven't had decent fish and chips in a while, let's go have that." Erza replied as she looked at the man's back.

"So it is settled?" Natsu asked as he looked between the scarlet beauty next to him and the raven-haired man at the end of the helicopter.

"Sounds like it, we'll get cleaned up and changed after the debriefing and then head off." The man zipped up his pants and closed the hatch.

…

The next few moments were filled with a comfortable silence, the only sound being that reached Natsu's ears was that of the helicopter, the woman next to him and Gray… "Oh shit…"

The pinkette launched off the seat and went to the injured agent, he put a finger against his jugular and checked for a pulse… he found none… "Fucking Shit!"

"What's wrong Natsu!?" Erza asked as she quickly rose from her seat, her eyes on the older agent.

"His heart stopped, put him on the floor now!" The man ordered as he stepped back, allowing the redhead to use her psionic abilities to move the stretcher to the floor. "Gray get the pilot to get us on the pad ASAP!"

The raven-haired man ran past the duo and made his way up to the front of the helicopter as Natsu started applying CPR, counting in his head and giving the man a breath of air.

"I fucking knew it! I just fucking knew it!" The man called out as he continued to try and revive the agent.

COMM: "We need Medics to the landing pad right fucking now! Do Not Lower The Fucking Pad!"

There was a light bump, notifying the passengers that the helicopter has landed on the pad.

"Erza, Rear Hatch!" He ordered the redhead as she raced to the back of the Osprey, she hit a button to lower the rear door.

COMM: "Medical team on its way Natsu." Mira replied to the agent.

"Are there Defibs on board!?" Natsu shouted down to the cockpit.

COMM: "Negative. The doctors just came out of the doors, they'll be here in a few moments." Keira replied as she and the co-pilot ran through their checklist for powering down.

"Are you getting anywhere?" Erza asked as she came back to the pinkette and Macao, worry evident in her voice.

"Still no pulse or breathing, I'm doing my best to keep his blood pumping manually and giving him oxygen."

The sound of a gurney reaches his ears, making him look past the agent and see doctors by the ramp, he motions them up. "He is up here!"

Two of the Medics along with Erza and Natsu quickly lift the stretcher and take it to the gurney, Erza requips it away so Macao lays on the wheeled hospital stretcher.

"We'll take it from here." One of the Medics says as she and the others wheel him away quickly.

Gray steps out of the helicopter and stands with the other two agents as they watch the man disappear into the building, they feel a lurch below them as the elevator starts taking them down into the hanger. "Natsu… what do you think?"

COMM: "Guys I'm closing the feeds, I'll see you three at the debrief." Mira said to the three agents.

The pinkette didn't respond to the question, causing Gray to move in front of the man. Gray noticed that the emotion had completely drained from the agent's face, his eyes were cold dark voids.

Natsu reached into one of his pockets and pulled out a cigarette from a packet, he brought it up and placed it in his lips as he lit it with a flame from the end of his finger, his eyes distant as he watched the walls move up past them.

He took a long drag from the cigarette and let it out slowly as his gaze focused on the raven-haired man in front of him.

"Honestly…" He spoke in a dull and cold tone, completely void of emotion. "The man was dead even before we left that place, his body just hadn't let out is all."

Gray ran a hand through his hair, he knew it was the truth but he still didn't like it. After a long pause, he let out a long sigh. "You're right… Gimme one why don't you."

Natsu reached into his pocket and gave the man the requested cigarette, holding out an open hand with a small ball of fire in it for Gray to light it from.

"Thanks." He muttered as he leaned in and used the offered flame. "Romeo… Fuck. Who is going to tell him?"

The pinkette looked between the other two agents before beginning to walk to the edge of the platform. "I will, you two go to the debriefing. Looks like our little dinner date will be cancelled."

"Where are you heading?" Erza asked solemnly, her eyes following the man still covered in dried blood.

"I'll be at the bar tonight, in house." His voice remained low and monotone as he turned to look over his shoulder at his friends. "Welcome to join me later on, bring blondie, we'll raise our glasses in his memory tonight."

"We'll be there." Gray responded as they watched the man step off the platform right as it sank into place in the ground, his footsteps echoed loudly as the man walked.

With one last drag, Natsu finished the smoke, he crushed the smouldering remnants in his hand and flicked the snuffed out butt into a nearby bin as he disappeared down the hallway.

The redhead let out a worn-out sigh, she took her eyes off the now long gone agent and turned to the man beside her. "Even I don't need tarot cards to see black clothes and stormy night in our near future."

"What's your plans after this?" Gray asked as he too finished the cigarette and turned to look into the woman's hardened eyes.

"Bathhouse, going to soak for a few hours and hope to hell that I relax, probably see what happens while I am there, if I'm not relaxed then I guess I'll take to the range, unload a box of forty-fives into a target, then go drink myself stupid." She replied as she let her hair down from the bun she had it in, she flicked it over her shoulders and stretched out her arms. "What about you?"

"I'm in a shit mood, so the usual outlet of finding a woman and bedding her is off the list, so I guess a long shower, a burger or two, or a pizza, put on a comedy and then come out and drink myself stupid with you two."

Erza's stomach growls at the mention of food, realisation striking her that she hadn't eaten before she left her last mission and since she got called out immediately then she hadn't had the opportunity to eat when she got home. "I could go for pizza, want me to make a call and have two extra-large pizzas be sent to our debriefing?"

"Sounds like a great plan. Well, let's move out" Gray replied as he set off for the armoury, he couldn't wait to get out of his gear.

* * *

Mira walked the silent halls of the underground facility, she had black military boots, a black leather jacket with matching pants, and a white tube top on, her steps echoed down the halls.

Her destinations was the bar, though while normally it was loud and rowdy, tonight it was sombre, there was no thumping music, no smell of sweat, it was calm and quiet as everyone was mourning their lost brother.

She entered the bar and went over to the bartender, she didn't want anything fancy, no cocktails this time, she needed something hard, some stiff liquor to numb the feelings inside of her, she had seen everything that had happened, saw the moment the life left Macao's body, all through the eyes of Natsu.

She saw how he tried and tried to bring the man back alive, saw every thrust his hands had made against the chest, desperately trying to bring the man back from death's embrace, to claw Macao's life out of the reaper's cold, unyielding grip. But, in the end, the man was beyond saving, the doctors diagnosed him as Dead On Arrival.

"Here you go Mira, it's all on the house tonight, Old Man's orders." The bartender said softly as he handed the woman a glass with a ball of ice in it, along with a full bottle of Jack.

The woman nodded her head in thanks and turned to make her way to a seat, she spotted a pink-haired man, slumped against a table, his only company being a little over a dozen bottles of Vodka. She made her way over and took one of the seats.

"Anyone home in there?"

The man slowly looked up, half a smoke in his lips as his eyes focused on the woman like an eagle, he sat up with a groan and a small wobble as the smoke fell from his mouth. "Hey Mira… was taking a nap."

"Did you have company?" The white-haired woman asked softly as she gestured to the bottles on the table. "Or have you been drinking alone?"

"Company just turned up." He replied, there was some life in his voice, but it wasn't much, he pointed to the woman in front of him.

"How's the kid?"

Natsu sighed and lifted the bottle in his hand and brought it to his lips, drinking the contents in mouthfuls. "He didn't believe me at first, claimed I was lying."

"Ah…"

"Here I stood, still geared up and covered in blood, I stood in front of his door… and I felt nothing, just emptiness, no remorse, no anger, no pain… nothing."

Mira poured herself a glass of whiskey and settled into her seat. "Tell me how it happened."

"Excuse me Monsieur Salamander?" Asked a quiet voice.

Natsu looked to his left slowly and saw a green eyed young woman, her dirty blonde hair was neatly tied up in an elaborate bun behind her head, she was in a maid's outfit and had an empty tray in her hands.

"Hey Genevieve, care for a drink?" The man held out the bottle of vodka for her.

"Non, Non, Monsieur Salamander… zat bottle is empty. Shall I get you another and zen maybe we could share it?"

"Ah, thanks."

The maid picked up all the empty bottles and placed them on her tray, she curtsies and gives the pink-haired agent a wink before turning and leaving.

"Hey, who was the maid?"

The two agents turned to the new voice and were greeted with the sight of the trio they were waiting for, plus an extra person.

"That Lucy, was Genevieve, she is a staff member here." Natsu replied to the blonde woman, he wobbled slightly in his seat as his eyes drifted across the four newcomers. "Have a seat you guys. Drinks are free tonight."

"Wha… why?" Asked Lucy as she took the seat to Mira's left, she was surprised that they would put the entire stock up for free.

"Our comrade, our brother, has fallen." Erza informed her as she too took a seat, followed by Gray and a blue-haired teen boy in black jeans and a blue hoodie and beanie.

"It is in this way that we commemorate his memory, tonight we will raise our glasses to Macao Conbolt, our fallen friend who watched over us as we grew up, treating us like his own children." Gray continued on from the redhead, his voice full of sadness as he raised his pint glass full of Stout.

The pinkette turned to the blue-haired boy and nodded over to the bar. "Happy, tonight you can drink with us, go get yourself something."

The teen smiled sadly, showing his feline fangs. "Erza already ordered me something, she said you would say something like that."

"Lucy, Happy and I will be having Port tonight, we have two bottles and three glasses coming."

Natsu closed his eyes and slowly nodded his head at Erza, a small smile spreading across his face. "So Lucy. As has been said. On this long night of solace, we drink to remember a great man, a man who left behind a son, Romeo Conbolt."

The clinking of glass caught his attention as Genevieve brought their drinks over, plus an extra one for herself, she placed the tray in the middle of the round table and took a seat on the pinkette's lap. "Thanks for getting us the drinks Genevieve."

"Of course Monsieur Salamander, 'old me?"

Natsu snaked an arm around the maid's slim waist as he took a swig from his new bottle of vodka, as he brought it to his lips he noticed smudges of wine red lipstick, he saw the same lipstick on the lips of the maid on his lap, he chuckled softly and smirked at the woman. "Couldn't help yourself could you?"

"I don't know what you are talking about Monsieur…" She replied innocently as she sipped her own drink.

"Anyway, Natsu, you were saying about how it went with Romeo." Mira said, refocusing the drunken agent back to the topic of Romeo.

"Ah yeah… There I was in front of his door, he kept calling me a liar, telling me that his dad will be coming down the hall right behind me any moment now." Natsu lit another smoke and brought it to his lips.

"When he came to terms with it he started banging on my chest, I still had my blood-covered gear on… but I couldn't stop the kid, I knew that I deserved it, the kid looked up to me but in the end, I failed him."

"To Romeo." Happy said as he raised his glass, the others followed suit and they all took a sip of their drinks.

"In the end, the poor kid fell to his knees and broke out in tears, I couldn't move, couldn't console him. After a few minutes, I managed to break out of it, took him to one of his friends, got them to organise a sleepover, I think I frighted the other kids." Natsu said, his voice as empty as his eyes.

"Dead eyes and a hollow voice would do that brother, more so since you still had your gear on. While the kids would be used to seeing and hearing stories of us agents, seeing one in the state you were in would definitely shock them."

The group turned to the new voice and saw the older Dragneel, clad in black and with a kind looking blonde, green-eyed woman in a cream-coloured dress on his arm, she came up to his chin in height and had a petite figure but was no less womanly.

Hello Zeref, Mavis, how are you two tonight?" Erza asked politely with a bow of her head.

"We're fine, we just came back from a restaurant. It had great food." Zeref replied to the redhead.

"Ooh, it also had this delicious strawberry cheesecake that you have to try." Mavis added, her eyes sparkling as she remembered the taste fondly, she licked her lips.

"Where is it?" The scarlet-haired woman asked curiously, her interest piqued by the mention of her favourite food.

"In the Ichigo District of Magnolia, the place is called Fujin Raijin."

"I must go there in the near future."

"You two coming to join us?" Natsu asked the duo, only to get a shake of the head from his brother.

"Can't do that tonight Natsu, Mavis has been grilling me hard for all the long nighters that I have been taking." The black-haired Dragneel replied with a small grin and receiving a gasp and a playful smack to the chest from Mavis.

"I do not~, meanie." She pouts at him but her eyes are full of mirth.

Zeref chuckles softly and gives the woman a warm smile before turning his attention back to his brother. "I promised her that I'll stop staying at my office late, and we agreed to watch a few movies tonight before bed to make up for our absence."

"No problem, make sure you forward me Lucy's." He points to the blonde sat at the table. "Training regiment, my private computer so I can study it and make changes if I need to."

"In the morning. See you all tomorrow." Zeref replied as he smiled at the group, Mavis gave them a wave and they left the bar.

"Well… Who's ready to get absolutely smashed?" Gray said as he raised his almost empty pint glass and downed the rest of it.

"For Macao." All the members of the table threw their drinks back and downed the contents, following Gray's example.

* * *

**One Week Later, Magnolia City**

Natsu stood in his bedroom, in his house in the city, he lets out a long, tired sigh. The shadows from long nights spent in the throes of a nightmare or hours upon hours of sleeplessness had left their mark upon his face. "Tonight's the night…"

He went into his bathroom and splashed some water on his face to try and make himself seem a little more awake.

"Natsu?" Called a voice in the hallway.

"Yeah Happy, what's up?"

"It's almost time, are you ready?"

"Yeah… almost done here." The pinkette looked up at his reflection through the badly cracked mirror, the result of a punch thrown in anger at the owner of reflection.

"I'm going to have to replace that mirror…" He muttered to himself as he went back into the bedroom and threw on a black suit jacket over his tieless black dress shirt.

A flash of light followed quickly by a loud thunderclap lit up the room as Natsu let out a long yawn, he crossed the room and exited into the hallway where Happy was waiting in his human form, his tail was low and his ears folded flat on his head. "We'll be taking the Hemi Cuda, no way am I taking the bike out in this weather, we'll be fucking soaked in seconds and frozen solid by the time we get there."

The transformed exceed followed the pinkette down the hall and stairway and to the attached garage. "It's been a while since you took the Hemi out for a spin, it's bound to turn heads."

"Tonight, that isn't our goal, let's hurry as we better not be late."

"Let's go say our final goodbye then, shall we?"

The two males got into the muscle car and the pinkette started it up, he hit the button for the garage door and drove out slowly once it was up, hitting the button again as he drove out into the pouring rain.

"How gods damn cliché… Fucking rain at a funeral."

"Just like the movies, hey Natsu?"

"Yeah… Just like the movies kiddo."

The man kept the monster of a car quiet as he prowled the streets, making sure the heavily customised twin-turbo Viper V10 engine under the bonnet doesn't rear its head.

There were hardly any cars on the road as the black Cuda drove through the cones of light from the street lamps, the heavy downpour of rain pelting the car as the duo made their way to the location of the funeral in silence.

They pulled in to a parking spot next to a red MX-5 and shut the car down, Natsu turned to his companion with a sigh. "Come on kiddo, time to go."

The two guys stepped out of their car into the pouring rain and made their way into the funeral parlour where they meet up with various members of the Agency.

"Ah there you to are, you are almost late." A soft voice called out to them, it was a woman with short white hair.

"Hey Lis, sorry about that but the weather is absolute fuc…"

"Please don't swear in here Natsu, save it for once we are out of the graveyard, don't want to wake any restless souls." Lisanna said quietly, she took his arm in hers and led him to the group he'll be seated with.

"Natsu." A raven-haired man said with a nod at the newcomer.

"Gray." The pinkette gave a nod in greetings back to the man. "Who are we with?"

"Erza, she went to the bathroom, Mira and her brother and sister." He gave a nod to Lisanna who held onto Natsu's arm. "Lucy, she and Mira are with Erza, and we have Romeo…"

"Does he still hate us?"

"I don't know man… he hasn't said a word to Erza and I since that night we brought him back."

Natsu let out a long sigh. "I'll take that as a yes."

Happy gently tugged on Lisanna's black dress, causing her to look over and immediately wrap him up in her arms. "Oh Happy! You look so cute like that, all dressed in a suit, and your transformation magic is coming along very well."

The three missing women exited the toilets and made their way to the table as the others took their seats, Mira smiles at the pinkette but her smile drops at the sight of the dark shadows under his eyes. "Natsu… if you have been having problems sleeping then you should have come to my place, I'd have been happy to give you a warm body to hold onto."

"I know Mira, maybe after tonight, I'll see if I sleep better if I don't then I'll chat to the Doc and see if she can give me anything."

"And then come to mine, you need your wits about you, not only do you have to start training Lucy but you still are on the active-duty roster. I won't have you being careless on a mission and getting yourself hurt, or worse, not on my watch."

"Yes ma'am." The pinkette replied in a mock military tone as he snapped off a halfhearted but playful salute, with a sigh he sat back in the chair. "Well, looks like the old man is taking the stage."

Romeo took a seat at their table just as Makarov stood upon the stage where the casket rests, the old man let out a sorrowful sigh. "It always pains me when one of my family gets hurt, they come home from a job with cuts, broken bones or bullet wounds…"

The room fell silent as they gave their full attention to their Director. "But when I heard that one of our own had been captured. I gathered together a team of some of our best agents and tasked them to bring our family back home." The old man looked around the room slowly, making eye contact with all. "Our team managed to recover Macao from the facility he was being held at and brought him back. I hoped that it would be all happy faces upon their return… but unfortunately, due to the extensive injuries he had suffered while being held captive."

The man let out a sad sigh and looked over at the fallen agent in the mahogany casket. "Unfortunately his heart gave out moments before the team landed at HQ, they did everything they could to revive the man, but in the end, we lost a member of our family."

"Macao was a great man who was dedicated to his family, he loved them and put them above all else, in his untimely passing he leaves behind his son, Romeo Conbolt, please show our boy kindness and help him through this tough time."

Makarov looked around the room once more and gestured to the open casket. "It is time to say your parting words to our dear member of our family, it isn't mandatory but if you have anything to say or a gift for the passage then now is the time for it."

The old man moved to the casket and used his magic to grow his body to a relatively normal height so he could look his lost family member in the face as he said his parting words, tears rolled down his cheeks as he said his goodbyes to the man.

A line slowly formed going up the stairs, the agents and family members wanting to give their gift and last words to Macao, some people left a farewell card, others a picture of themselves and Macao, and some left a belonging, believing it to be of use in his afterlife.

As the line dwindled, and the final few were left, Romeo had to be led away after he said goodbye as he broke down into tears, Wakaba left his best friend a pack of his own favourite cigars. "I know right now you can't make use of these, but when you get to wherever you are going, light 'em up and remember the good times we had old friend, but save one for me, I'll be seeing you when it's my time to cross over."

Gray moved up to the casket and placed a small Fairy Tail emblem made out of everlasting ice in the casket, he spoke no words as nothing he could say would make things better, it was his duty to bring the man back alive and he had failed.

A teary-eyed Erza followed behind him, she placed down Macao's .357 revolver that was recovered two days after they brought him back. "I'm sorry it had to go this way, we'll take care of Romeo, don't worry."

A few more agents said their goodbyes to their fallen friend until finally Natsu, who was last in line, as he made his way to the casket he slid a hand into a pocket in his suit pants, without saying a word he pulled out a black Zippo lighter with a stylistic painting of a red dragon on it. He gently placed it into the dead man's hand as he looked him in his peaceful face. 'I'm sorry.'

The funeral director came out once everyone was seated, she gently closed the casket up and sealed it shut. "May I have some volunteers to take the casket to the burial site."

Natsu stood up from his seat, quickly followed by Gray, Mira, Erza and Elfman at their table, a few tables over rose a burly blonde man with a lightning scar on his face, it was Laxus.

"We volunteer." They all replied in tandem, their eyes on the casket.

"Very well." The funeral director said with a polite nod, she gestured to the casket beside her. "Come take your positions please."

The six agents made their way to the coffin and stood three aside, the woman moved in front of them. "On three, lift and follow me. One, two, three, lift."

The funeral director and the six agents led the way out to the burial site, they walked through the heavy rain as it soaked them to the bone, but they never lost grip of the rails.

The thunder and lightning stirred memories in Natsu's head, memories of booming explosions and tracers flying through the air, the cracking of high powered machinegun fire and the blasts of shotguns, the escorting of the stretcher carrying a fallen friend...

As the agents walked with the casket, the rest of the funeral-goers moved along the path in front of them, creating two lines bordering the procession, they saluted the agent's as they passed with the precious cargo.

The coffin was placed in the lowering mechanism at the top of the hole as the funeral director stood at the control panel, she waited for everyone to gather around and then started lowering it into the ground.

Those who had flowers with them slowly made their way to the hole, sometimes a single flower was laid in the hole, other times it was a whole bouquet of flowers, the grounds were silent aside from the sound of the raging storm.

The agents all mourned in their own ways, some cried silent tears, the rain washing the evidence away. Others thought bitter thoughts, they planned on finding those responsible and showing them the pain they felt inside. The rest just gazed emptily into the pit, they weren't without emotion, they just couldn't express it in any way, there were no dark or sad thoughts for these people for they were trapped within their minds, the tragedy that occurred finally hitting home as the casket made contact with its final resting place.

Makarov moved to the funeral director's side, he was back in his natural form as he looked up at the woman. "We'll stay here a little longer dear, you and your boys can take the crane back inside and get out of the cold rain."

"Thank you sir, may the dead rest peacefully." She gestured to her employees who came and took the crane back into the building.

"And may the living live well." The old man replied to the woman as she nodded respectfully and left the group in peace.

Ten slow minutes passed as the funeral-goers stood in the rain, all finally at peace now that their family has been put to rest.

Laxus moved to his grandfather's side and spoke with a quiet voice in respect for the dead. "So Old Man, do we know who did this?"

"We don't know for certain and I don't want to jump to conclusions Laxus, but while I was reviewing the footage from Natsu's point of view, I heard him say "It reeks of phantoms." It's no solid evidence so we can't move on it unless we get something more concrete."

Laxus saw the pinkette's ears twitch at the sound of his name, his eyes slowly moved up to meet Laxus' own. "So what's the plan?"

"Well Laxus, I've got Levy's team working on collecting information, by any means necessary. It's just a matter of time before we find out who did this, then we just have to plan out a course of action."

"Do you mind if I take my team and go talk to some of our connections, maybe they could know something or other."

"You have my blessings kid, proceed with your mission." Makarov said as he looked up at his grandson.

* * *

**Well, that is another chapter done, this was a sad one, with Macao losing his life and leaving his family behind. **

**I was dwelling on this choice for a while, to kill him or not, but given that he had suffered a lot of severe injuries while being tortured for information, I decided that the strain this had on his body should be too much, even for a Fairy Tail Agent who has undergone the Enhancement Process as while it does make them faster, stronger, and more resilient along with being able to heal faster (not in an hour or so but much faster than that of a normal human), I felt that the strain would be too much and cause his heart to give out completely.**

**If it had been a regular "Enhanced" Interrogation, then Macao would have survived thanks to his training, but whoever did it was an extremely sadistic person who gets off on torture.**

**I hope you have enjoyed this rather dark and sad chapter… well enjoyed it as much as one can, given that a man died and they held his funeral, but this is the reality of the dark world they live in. Until the next one, peace and chicken grease.**


	9. Chp 9: Flashback

**This is just the flashback of what happened to Lisanna and Natsu, it's a more detailed depiction of their capture that I wrote for Continued Life of a Dragonslayer, I decided to make it into its own standalone mini-chapter for this story, with a few minor changes to make it fit better.**

* * *

**Unknown Facility, Fiore**

Agent Salamander groaned softly as he awoke from his drug-induced slumber, he groggily looked around and took in his surroundings.

"Fuck…" He muttered as his vision sharpened and his recent memories flooded back, he sat up fully, now completely alert and taking in all the sounds around him.

He spots a table with his equipment on it. "Damn I don't have any picks on me, gotta try and burn my way through it." He tried to ignite his wrists to melt his restraints only for nothing to happen, not even an ember, it felt as if his magic had turned to the consistency of thick slime inside of him. "Fucking hell… I'm in a Magic Suppression Field."

"That you are." Came a rough male voice to his left, a man of medium height and build stepped out from the shadows. "Once we realised we were dealing with Agents we activated our facility's MSF."

The tied-up agent remained silent as he observed his captor, noting that he isn't that high up and seems to just be a goon who is supposed to keep watch over him.

"Oh? Not talking anymore? A pity and here I was hoping I could get a reason to cut your tongue out." The man taunted as he moved to the pinkette, standing in front of him and drawing a Bowie knife that had blood on it, from the smell of it the blood was Sal's own.

"Where am I?" Salamander asked slowly and calmly as he put tension on the restraints.

"Shouldn't you be asking where your partner is?" The man taunted.

"One problem at a time… I'll find her soon enough."

"Oh, will you now? Just how do you plan on doing that? You have no magic at all, cunt." The man said as he waved the knife in front of the agent, unaware of the danger he was in.

A small grin spread across Natsu's face as he chuckled quietly. "You know, you really should have had more men watching me, you would've liked the backup." In an instant the pinkette wrenched his arms apart, snapping the bindings and rising from the seat at the same time, he quickly disarmed the guard and put the knife into his chest, making sure to miss the heart but to sink the knife into a major artery.

The man fell back and coughed. "What… How?"

"You underestimated me. Now tell me where to find my partner?"

"She… she is *cough* in the other cell block, entertaining the men." A wicked grin grew on the thug's face. "She has one damn fine body…"

"Grraah!" The agent angrily wrenched the knife out of the man's chest and buried it into his face, the knife passed right through and hit the medulla oblongata, killing the man instantly.

"I've got to contact command, hopefully, they know what has happened." He said as he calmed himself down, he rose up and walked over to the bench that has his gear on it, removing what was left of his restraints as he crossed the room.

"Tac-com check." He strapped the slim forearm mounted computer to his arm. "My Glock 20 and 29, their ammo and the rest of the equipment on the belt." He grabbed the belt and checked the pockets, happy that none of the ammo and tech/gadgets had been removed, he put it on and checked his main sidearm and his backup subcompact sidearm, noting that they had full mags.

He put on the non-verbal throat mic and the comms earpiece and activated them with his Tac-com.

COMM: "Command? This is Agent Salamander, Agent Demon are you there?"

COMM: "Agent Salamander! Natsu! Agent Demon here, it's good to hear your voice, you and Agent Soul went dark 8 hours ago." Came the female voice of Agent Demon.

COMM: "I know… I'm sorry Demon… We were captured, they have your sister in another cell block, must be in some kind of run-down prison, you won't like what I have to tell you next."

COMM: "Natsu… What happened to my sister? What happened to little Lisanna?! Activate your contacts!"

Natsu reached down and tapped on his Tac-com, activating the visual link on his contacts so his handler can see what he sees.

COMM: "Mira… this bloke." Agent Salamander knelt down next to the dead body of the thug. "He said that Soul, that Lis was "Entertaining the men"…"

A muffled voice came across the comms, the voice was that of an old wise man.

COMM: "Agent Salamander. It's Director Makarov, I've taken over for Agent Demon as your handler for this mission as she is currently not fit to do her job." There was a pause as the sounds of struggle could be heard in the background. "Someone take her home before she goes ballistic and hurts someone! Don't tell Agent Beast what has happened either, we don't want either of them going on a rampage!"

COMM: "Sir, I'm not leaving her behind."

COMM: "I don't expect you to Agent Salamander, I've sent you backup, agents Knight and Blizzard, or as you call him Frosty…" The pinkette grinned at the name, knowing that he had to change his codename to Frosty after a bet he had lost a few days previously. "Are on their way to your position."

COMM: "Sir there is an MSF in the area, advise them to eliminate the device ASAP."

COMM: "Noted, You have your orders Agent, make sure you bring her back alive."

COMM: "Affirmative."

The Agent shook loose the last vestiges of drowsiness and made his way to the exit. "I'm coming Lis, don't worry…" He mumbled to himself.

He took a deep breath and kicked the door, breaking it off the hinges and sending it flying into the wall opposite the room, crushing a thug under the weight of the reinforced door.

The agent quickly exited and swept his main pistol up then down the hall, making sure it is clear before sniffing the air, hoping to catch onto a trace of the scent of his friend.

* * *

The agent silently stalked down the hallway, making sure he isn't heard by any thugs so he can get the drop on them.

A door opened to his right and a thug stepped out of the room with his back to the agent, he had a Benelli M4 shotgun strapped to his back.

"Yeah don't worry Joe, I'll get your cash tomorrow, a bet is a bet." He said as he had his head through the doorway, talking to a thug named Joe.

The pink-haired agent raised his suppressed pistol and put a bullet right through the back of the thug's head, he quickly followed the falling body into the room and dispatched two more thugs inside the room with clean headshots.

The two men slump down over a makeshift poker table, their weapons at their feet in case of emergency but they were too slow to grab them.

Salamander looked around the room for any further signs of hostiles before kneeling down and pulling off the shotgun from the goon at his feet. "You won't be needing this anymore." He holstered his pistol and placed the pouch of buckshot onto his belt and the shotgun on his back. "Gotta get a move on Natsu… the longer you take the worse things they can do to Lis…" He muttered as he pulled the first body into the room and checked the other two for any useful info or ammo.

Once he was done he slipped back out into the hallway with the shotgun at the ready, taking slow and careful breaths to stay calm and in control as he follows his partner's scent.

COMM: "Salamander to Knight, what is your ETA?."

COMM: "This is Knight." Replied a kind and mature female voice. "We have just arrived and are heading to the MSF generator."

COMM: "I'm not far from Soul's position, I'll radio when I have her safe and secured."

COMM: "Copy that Salamander." Knight replied as she and Frosty made their way into the compound.

Agent Salamander proceeded towards his partner, shooting any hostiles that come his way and that stand between him and his comrade.

It took only a few minutes to reach the door to the cell that his fellow agent was being held within, it was being guarded by a lone thug outside, the pinkette took the Bowie knife that he used to kill his own guard and threw it at the man's head, killing him instantly so he doesn't warn anyone inside.

The pinkette pressed against the wall next to the door, he grabbed the handle and opened it quietly, and slipped inside, he saw something he hoped would never happen.

Agent Soul was tied to a chair, she was stripped naked and was being assaulted by several thugs.

"Come here little slut! Come and suck on my dick!" One shouted as he shoved his cock down her throat, causing her to gag and cough. "Suck!"

The white-haired woman was covered in cum from her face to her toes, she was bruised and beaten, it looked like she had resisted for a long time but she was broken, even now she tries to resist but her willpower has stretched thin.

The man grabbed her hair roughly and face fucked the captured agent. "Not so powerful without your magic are you, princess!"

Click Clack

The sound went unheard by all but Lisanna whose eyes flicked to the door in fear of another man forcing himself on her, only to be greeted with the sight of her partner, frozen in shock but she could see the veins throbbing, the gears turning behind his eyes as the dark green lightens and shifts colours.

A growl permeates the room, the sound of a predator with its prey in its sights, the pinkette's vision became blanketed in a red film of rage as the shotgun he was holding landed on the ground.

The thug with his cock down the young woman's throat noticed her attention elsewhere and turned to see what has transfixed her. "Who the fuck are you? Wait… It's the other agent!"

The instant the thug spoke up, Agent Salamander lost himself, in a fraction of a second he had crossed the room and lifted the man up by his face, bone-cracking from the pressure imparted by his hand. "What have you done to her…?" He growled out menacingly, his eyes red with hatred.

CRACK

The thug's jaw snapped under the pressure of the agent's iron grip, the pinkette threw the man at the wall next to the door with such force that the man crashed through it, breaking the concrete and steel. He died on impact, what is left of his body hung on the wall, half inside the room and half in the hallway.

A pulse flew through his body as he tried to use his magic. It fought to be free of its prison, the other thugs in the room were frozen in shock, unable to process what happened in a matter of seconds, they were having fun with their new plaything and now one of them was dead all thanks to this pink-haired man, no monster, this pink-haired monster broke free and found them.

Natsu leapt towards the closest one and landed a heavy kick to his side, sending him flying into the wall, breaking multiple bones and snapping the rest of the thugs out of their stupor.

"Fucking run!" One of them shouted, he was short and had orange hair.

"There will be no running from me…" Natsu growled as he kicked the rifle at his feet up then booted it at the thug, embedding it into his stomach. "No one will be leaving. Not until I have killed every last one OF YOU!"

His magic pulse through his body again, trying to force its way out, causing the air to heat up.

A brown hair man ran for the doorway, he trampled the orange-haired man, stepping on his arm and kicking the back of his head as he fearfully looked over his shoulder at the monster, an arm raising in slow motion with one of the Glocks in hand.

Bang… Bang…

Two 10mm bullets raced through the air, fired in quick succession at the fleeing man, they collide with the backs of his knees, shattering them and making so he can't run away, only crawl.

"You think…" The pinkette lowed the pistol and holstered it as he walked to the down brunette. "That after what I have seen…"

CRACK

Natsu had stomped on his pelvis, shattering it so the man could only drag himself. "That I'd let even one of you get away." He walks past the body and grabs the Bowie knife from the dead thug in the doorway, tossing it up and catching it as he slowly turned back to the thugs who had been assaulting his friend. "I'm going to teach you a lesson, something you'll think about in your last moments in this world."

Quick as a blur he moved about the room, punching, kicking and cutting, albeit shallow cuts, the thugs, beating them to a pulp and making them submit to his rage.

He lines up all the thugs and strips them as bare as they stripped Lisanna, throwing the knife up and catching it as he looked at the thugs with the utmost contempt. "Ready or not, here comes retribution."

He moves in front of the orange-haired man and plunges the knife down in a flash, cutting off his cock and balls and making the man scream in horror and unbelievable pain. He kicks the thug in the gut to shut him up and picks up the man's bloody genitals. "How about you suck on it!" He shoved them down the man's throat and made sure they were swallowed.

The rest look on in fear and morbid curiosity as the thug starts to bleed out from his wound, waiting for the monster to turn his eyes on them, for it to be their turn on the chopping block.

Fire erupts from the agent's body, but it wasn't his usual fire, it was black and blood red, fuelled by something else, his magic seems to slacken and backs off from trying to escape as this new outlet has appeared.

"Heh heh heh…" He slowly laughed menacingly as he raised a flame covered hand. "Oh, you guys are in for hell now…" He guided the fire to the bleeding man's crotch, sealing the wound shut with an agonising scream and the smell of burning flesh.

Each of the men suffered the same fate, castrated and made to eat their own genitals, then have the wound sealed with fire.

A burst of orangey-red fire flew out of his body as he slowly burns the men to ash, the screams and smoke drifted out of the room and down the hall.

Lisanna felt her magic return to normal but is too horrified by what happened to her over the many hours since they were captured to use the magic just yet.

Minutes later a scarlet haired woman and a raven-haired man entered the room, both kitted out with ballistic armour and Beowulf .50cal Assault Rifles, they silently looked around the room at the burning bodies that were well and truly dead and were turning to ash.

Frosty walked over to Salamander and rested a hand on his shoulder. "We're here man, it's time to cool down, let the anger go." He snaps his fingers and instantly cools the air, bringing it down to a comfortable temperature as Knight walks to Lisanna.

"It's ok, they can't harm you anymore." She said soothingly as she cleaned the semen off of the other agent's body. "Salamander, can you tell me what they did to her."

The pinkette calmed down with a few very deep breaths and nodded his thanks to Gray, he turned to the two females and walked over. "As far as I can smell and see, it was all on the outside, she wasn't vaginally or anally raped."

Agent Soul mumbled with a nod, her head hung low as tears ran down her cheeks. "They were about to do that when Natsu came in and killed them all."

"The MSF is offline and all the hostiles have been eliminated." Knight said as she released Soul from her bindings, the redhead turned to the pinkette. "Good work, we could have lost a good agent today, two if we weren't lucky." She hugs Natsu briefly. "Help me get her cleaned up, clean water would help." She requipped a towel and a bucket.

Agent Salamander took the bucket and held it out to Frosty who filled it with ice, the pinkette then melted the ice and brought it up to lukewarm and placed it next to Lisanna, he took the towel and started cleaning her as Erza sorted out spare clothes and gathered up Agent Soul's equipment.

COMM: "Agent Knight to Director Makarov, Sir we found them, everyone is accounted for and in one piece, we are coming home."

* * *

**This was just something short, something I decided I should add to the story because it builds on Lisanna's character and it lets you know exactly what went down in the story she told Lucy, my next chapter is almost done so you'll be seeing that soon. I edited the previous chapter to change Natsu's car from a Charger to a Hemi Cuda, mainly because I decided that Chargers were overused and I like the look of the Hemi Cuda better.**

**I hope you all enjoyed this mini-chapter, I'll be seeing you soon with the next full chapter, see you all then! Peace and chicken grease, I'm out!**


	10. Chapter 10

**Magnolia**

The sound of rock music filled the dark room, it was being emitted by a phone that laid on the bed, beside the pillows.

The noise woke up an occupant of the bed, he released a tired and annoyed groan as he reached for his phone.

The device flashed an emblem followed by the title 'Director', alerting the man to the importance of the call, he hit the green button and brought the phone to his ear.

"Agent Salamander here, what can I do for you, Director Makarov?" The pinkette yawned as he felt movement under the sheets of the bed.

"You are sounding better Agent, getting a good amount of sleep?"

"Yes Sir, I've been able to sleep fairly well these last two weeks."

"Well sorry to have pulled you away from your rest, but I have a job for you."

"Hit me with it Sir."

"I need you to dig around in the shadier parts of the city, talk to some people and get information on some things, Levy is having trouble gathering it with her teams."

"Ok, send the details to my Tac-com, I'll read over it during breakfast and work out a plan."

"Thanks Natsu, now onto another subject. How is your protégé coming along?"

Natsu checked the encryption of the call, seeing if it is safe to talk casually. Satisfied, he brought the phone back to his ear. "She is doing surprisingly well, throwing herself into training with unyielding determination."

There was more movement under the sheets as two blue eyes and a few locks of white hair peeked out from under them, watching the pinkette coyly.

"She has a natural strength that surprised me coming from her. Her kicks are powerful and due to the rigorous training, her muscles are developing even further, we'll have to start testing her resilience, see if her body can handle chemical-based enhanced interrogation, starting small of course. But it will help us work out a plan for her Enhancement."

"Any clue what side effect she could get out of it?" Makarov asked the man, curiously.

"Cana would probably be the best person to ask that, she got bets going around for it."

"So what is your money on?"

"You think I'd bet money on my protégé?"

Makarov chuckled light-heartedly into the phone. "Natsu, which did you pick?"

The pinkette smiled as he felt his legs get moved apart and a warm, soft body settle down between them with the head resting on his hips as a hand started to caress his flaccid member. "Well I wouldn't mind if she got a boost to her reflexes like I did, I could easily train her to use it to the full extent."

"But?"

"But I don't think she'll get that, if anything I think she could get something we haven't even seen before, that is where I put my money."

"Interesting, and Mira, what did she choose?"

"She is hoping for something that would help infiltration, something like Mira's Perfect Emulation ability."

Natsu felt a pair of soft lips glide over the head of his penis, encasing the whole head in the woman's warm, wet mouth as her tongue danced across the delicate flesh.

The man bit back any sounds that would indicate what is happening under the sheets and continued to speak to his Director, unfazed. "I heard Erza say something about how Lucy would be suited to having something that would go along with her sharp and creative mind."

"Hmm… Interesting… Well, all that is left is to wait until you deem her ready for her Enhancement Therapy, keep me notified."

"Will do Sir, I will let you know what I can dig up."

"Enjoy your morning, Agent."

"Likewise, Sir."

The phone call ended and Natsu pushed the blankets down the bed, revealing Mira bobbing her head on the tip of his cock as her hand worked his shaft. "Devilish little woman."

Mira smirked up at him with her lips firmly sealed around the ridges at the base of the man's cock. With a hard suck, she pulled her head up off him so it comes out with a pop. "What did Makarov want?"

"He had a job for me, I've got to go to the ghettos and get some information. The briefing is on my Tac-com."

"Ah alright, going check it out down in the kitchen, hopefully, there isn't much going on down in the ghettos."

Mira gave the man a nod then wrapped her lips around his head again, sucking and bobbing as she kept her lustful blue eyes on the pinkette. "Whmm wommd oo ik or ekast?"

Natsu burst out laughing at the white-haired agent's attempts at speaking. "Mira, what did I tell you about talking with a mouthful?"

Mira let him go with another pop as she crawled up his body. "Fine~, I'll stick it somewhere else."

"Now what did you ask?"

Mira lined her hips up and sat down on the agent's cock, pushing it into her pussy until he was balls deep inside her. "Aaah~ much better. I was asking what you wanted for breakfast."

The man let out a groan as he grabbed her hips, making her go up and down his shaft. "Pancakes?"

"Ooh~ that sounds yummy~, Lis and Elfman would love that."

The pinkette slid his hands up to the woman's chest, sinking his fingers into her soft breasts as he starts to knead them.

"We'll need to shower first~." Mira moaned out as she sped up, the sensation of her breasts being fondled sending waves through her body.

"We'll get there soon enough." Natsu replied with a heated grin, he brought her down to his chest and rolled them over so she was now lying on her back.

"Oof, soon enough~." She repeated with her own grin as the man drew his hips back and started driving them against her roughly.

The two agents were at it for over half an hour straight, progressing from the bed to the bathroom and making sure that everything along the way was either used to be bent over or slammed up against. Finally, after a while, they were satisfied and both stood inside the ensuite shower as Natsu washed his handler's hair.

"Will you be going not long after breakfast?"

"Yeah, it's best I do since I want to get this over with so I can go back to training Lucy."

"Alright, well since we are both done in here." She turns and kisses the man gently. "Let's go and have breakfast."

The two left the shower after thoroughly cleaning each other and got dressed, they then headed down the hall and into the kitchen where Mira started to cook the pancakes and Natsu took a seat at her table, placing his Tac-com on it and activating the holographic display in the table.

Footsteps gently patted down the hall as Lisanna emerged from her room at the smell of food, she was only in a sheer silk gown that did little to hide her breasts, and had only a pair of white lace panties covering her womanhood.

She groaned as she stretched her slim body, shaking the last vestiges of sleep from it as she gazed around the room with somewhat bleary eyes. "Morning…"

"Hey Lis, how are you?" The pinkette asked as he looked to the youngest Strauss.

"Sleepy still, whatcha got there?"

"Hey Little-Sis, where is Elfman? He is usually before you."

The white-haired woman looked to her older sister at the stove and started to eye off the stack of pancakes. "He is at Evergreen's, snuck out during the night so you wouldn't catch him, I think he was betting that you were too occupied with Natsu."

"Aw, and I made enough pancakes to feed all of us."

"Pity, we'll just have to put our collective efforts together and beat this mighty breakfast foe!" Lisanna cheered with a giggle as she made her way to the table, she plopped herself down on the pinkette's lap as she read the holographic file. "Mission for you?"

Mira giggled as she watched her little sister, she placed the last pancake onto the plate and took it to the table. "Makarov called this morning and told Natsu of it."

"Yup, what she said, I'll be leaving after breakfast."

A thought popped into the young Strauss' mind as she arched her back, pushing her boobs out as she looked up at the taller man, her blue eyes glittering. "Did you ever tell Lucy about your magic?"

"Nope, she never asked, I'm guessing she thinks I am just a normal fire mage, well aside from the mandatory magic that we get taught as part of our job."

"You should tell her eventually, Natsu." Mira said as she sat down at the table. "Oh and Lis, your nipples are hard."

"MIRA~!" The woman complained as she covered her breasts with her hands the best she could.

"Would you like me to help you with covering them?" The pinkette said, cheekily, as he slid his hands up her stomach, causing the woman to jump in his lap and blush shyly at him.

"Some other time Natsu." Said Mira as she giggled at her sister's embarrassment. "Breakfast time now."

The three agents ate their pancakes in peaceful silence as Natsu read over the file he was sent, making notes on where to go, who to speak to and what information he needs to get.

Natsu patted Lisanna on the ass. "Ok Lis, time to hop up so I can get going."

She got up off the man but bent herself over the table teasingly, wiggling her ass at the pinkette. Mira giggles again. "You only act this way around him don't you~."

"Well I do feel safest around you and him, and Elfman but I wouldn't do it to him for obvious reasons."

Natsu spanks the younger woman's stuck out ass, making her jump and gasp as his fingers clipped her labia, he moved away from the table and placed the Tac-com on his left for arm. "I'll see you both later."

"Bye Natsu~." They both replied cheerfully as they smiled brightly at the pink-haired agent.

The man requipped a dual shoulder holster over his long-sleeved shirt, containing a Glock 20 in each holster under his armpits, he also had his backup G29 Subcompact that was holstered against the small of his back.

With a wave over his shoulder, he made his way to the door, taking his red and black motorcycle jacket off of the coatrack and putting it on as he left the house, he zipped it up to cover up his weapons.

* * *

**Kelbey District, Magnolia City**

Agent Salamander drove down the street on the back of his modified H2R, he kept his eyes out for trouble as he was riding through the Ghetto.

There were gunshots and sounds of fighting ringing out, coming from the streets around him, along with shouting and cars racing down the streets.

He heard the sound of skidding tyres behind him, causing the man to look in the mirror. A car had flung itself around the corner right behind him and was racing after him, the driver probably thought he had beef with the guy on the motorcycle.

"Huh, it's unusually chaotic today… I wonder what is going on." The pinkette said as he dived down an alleyway on his bike, losing the car in the process.

COMM: "Agent Salamander to HQ, hey can someone check the police radio for Kelbey District callouts, or any planned events, it seems a bit busy today."

COMM: "I'll get right on it, Agent Salamander." Replied a random person.

The man pulled out onto another road and kept heading to the house he needed to visit, he rolled into the alleyway behind the house about fifteen minutes later and got off his bike, he requipped his helmet away so it won't get stolen if it was left with the bike.

'Looks like this is the place, probably best to go in the back door, won't cause a scene at the front door.' The agent thought as he vaulted over the fence, he mentally went over the file as he walked to the back door.

click

Sal found that the door was unlocked when he put a little bit of pressure of the handle, the lock clicked softly as it allowed passage to the inside of the house.

The man stepped inside silently, tuning his ears for his target. 'He is in the lounge room.' Sal slowly unzipped his jacket, giving him access to his weapons should he need them.

As the man-made his way into the room, his contacts lit up with a name that matched his target, Ricardo Santiago, and he hadn't noticed Sal yet as he was busy portioning out bags of cocaine.

"Rico, Rico, Rico… so what are we up to today?" The agent said, making his presence known as he walked to the front window. "You know it's a bad habit measuring drugs with the blinds open, right?"

"Who the fuck are you, Puto?!" Shouted the Latino drug dealer as he watched the man close the curtains. "How the fuck did you get in my house!"

"Ways and means motherfucker, right now I am a friendly face." Sal turned around and looked the man dead in the eyes. "Do something that pisses me off and that will change, very quickly."

Ricardo stared at the man for a minute then quickly reached under the coffee table for his sawn-off shotgun, only to be stopped by the cold, hard muzzle of Agent Salamander's G20 resting against his forehead. "H-how?"

"I knew you were going to go for a weapon the second I saw you, and knowing people like you, you'd have a weapon either on you or near you." The pinkette replied as he pushed the man back into the couch with the pistol. "All it took was that split second that you tore your eyes off of me, that was all I needed."

There were a few minutes of silence, not a word was spoken but the panicked mutters of the drug dealer could be faintly heard.

Sal stepped back but kept his gun trained on the man. "Now, the reason why I am here is because I have some questions for you."

"Y-you need a warrant for that, Culo!"

"Motherfucker, do I look like a cop to you? Stood here with a gun pointed at you, after walking in through your back door. You're one dumb motherfucker."

COMM: "Agent Salamander, sorry it took so long. It seems like the police are conducting simultaneous raids on houses in your area."

"That complicates things…" He muttered to himself. "Rico, do you have any weapons near this recliner to my right?"

The man shook his head quickly and Sal motioned with his gun for him to sit in the chair causing the man to scurry to it.

"Now, I'm going to ask you a few questions, and you will answer them honestly or I'll give you a new hole to shit out of."

"If you ain't a cop then who the fuck are you?"

"Someone you really don't want to piss off." Salamander waited until the man looked comfy then slipped the pistol back into its holster. "Now, we don't have much time so I'll make this quick."

"I know that you run a black market, recently you had an item, two in fact. These items are powerful magical artefacts that in the wrong hands… would be devastating."

"How the fuck… Y-yes, I did sell two magical doohickey things, one was a golden key but I couldn't figure out what it unlocked… and the other was this fucking dumb wooden stick thing… it made me feel weird so I wanted to off-load it as soon as possible."

"Who bought these items off of you?" Sal asked as he heard movement outside.

"O-one was this short, fat bastard… Maricón wore this fancy suit, reeked of some shit perfume, and had a fundío taste in coño… if you get what I'm saying, eh putano?"

"And the other guy, who bought the wooden artefact?"

"Some scary-looking pendejo, tall with black hair and red eyes…, studs and other shit. Didn't say much, just came and dropped a lump of dinero on my table and pointed to the stick."

"Well, that's fucking wonderful… Now pal, if I were you I'd stash the blow somewhere, your ass is about to get raided." Sal said as he started to make his way to the back door.

"How the fuck do you know that!?"

"Because I know people, Adiós Mother Fucker."

Sal slipped out the back door as the front door blew open with a deafening bang, the police causing a loud racket as they pour into the house that he just vacated.

The agent jogged to the fence and vaulted it again, he landed near his bike and made his way to it, he requipped his helmet as he sat down on the bike and zipped up his motorcycle jacket.

COMM: "Agent Salamander to Director Makarov."

Sal started the bike and rolled out of the alleyway, he decided to do a loop around to the front of the house to see what is going on, pretending to be a rubbernecker as he slowed his roll and came to a stop out the front of the house.

COMM: "Go ahead, agent."

COMM: "Sir, I followed up on that file, can confirm that there were two magical artefacts in his possession, one celestial gate key, and one "wooden stick thing", he said it made him uncomfortable."

COMM: "That sounds like Lullaby, did you get the names or profiles of buyers?"

COMM: "No names Sir, only descriptions, though the seconds stands out."

Salamander stayed on the opposite side of the road from the cops, making sure that Ricardo Santiago doesn't see him and draw unwanted attention.

COMM: "The first one was described as short, fat, had bad cologne and wore a suit, it was also mentioned that he had a bad taste of women…"

COMM: "Hmm that sounds like that politician, Duke Everlue, he is a collector of magical trinkets and has a mansion on the outskirts of Shirotsume. What about Lullaby?"

COMM: "You're not going to like this one Sir… Tall, black hair, red eyes, studs, "scary looking". It sounds like Black Steel to me."

COMM: "Yes, it does… though it makes me wonder what they want with Lullaby."

COMM: "That's everything I have Sir."

COMM: "Thank you Agent Salamander, I'll have to see what we can dig up back here."

The pinkette sat upright as someone called out to him. "Hey you! Wait a moment!"

A female police officer jogged over to the bike from across the road, she looked over the bike then looked up at the helmeted head of the pinkette. "I thought I recognised the bike."

Natsu lifted off his helmet and sat it on the bike's fuel tank. "Good morning Officer Rose, how are you?"

"I'm well, been busy with work and all, there has been a big crackdown on drugs in the area. Why are you in this part of town, with a bike like that I'd have thought you'd live in one of the more… respectable districts?"

"I was going for a cruise, just roaming around you know, happened to roll up here a few moments ago and wanted to see what's up."

The woman smiled and looked at her fellow officers. "You know~, you never got back to me about that ride."

"Yeah sorry, my work got busy too, not to mention a man I considered family passed away the other week…" Natsu replied as he put down the kickstand and hopped off his bike.

"Ah, I'm sorry, I hope he rests well."

"As do I."

The woman brushed a lock of her hair behind her ear. "Speaking about districts, where do you live?"

"Planning to stake out the area are we~?" The man chided playfully as he leaned down with a grin.

The woman jumped and shook her hands in front of her, a heavy blush growing on her face. "No! No… well… maybe, but only so I can get more chances to ride that bike!"

"Its fine Alexia, I live in Ebony Hills, down Victoria Avenue. You'll either see my H2R or my black Hemi Cuda. Well, that depends on if I am washing them, usually they are both in my Garage."

"Oh… OH~." The officer's eyes when wide when she realised he practically told her exactly where to find him, her blush deepening as she glanced at her fellow officers. "Mind if we go for a quick spin?"

"If you aren't going to get in trouble for it."

"Hmm, well this is the last place my team will be, but I have to drop people off at the precinct… Maybe we could get lunch, I hope you don't mine my partner Allie being there."

"It's fine with me, where should we meet up?"

"The Waterfront District that is where Allie and I will be on patrol, there is this nice café near the water, Le Petit Bistro?"

"Ah cool, that isn't far from where I work, I'll see you there. How does 1 pm sound?"

The woman nods with a happy smile. "I'll see you there, don't do anything bad now big guy~."

Natsu chuckled and got back onto his H2R. "If I do then I'll make sure you are the one to handcuff me." He grinned at the reddening ears caused by the officer blushing at his insinuation.

Officer Rose flipped off the pinkette, trying to calm her blushing face and making the man laugh as he put his helmet back on and drove off.

* * *

**Waterfront District, 12:50 pm**

As Natsu drove through the city, a call came through his helmet. The caller ID flashed up on the visor and informed the pinkette that it was Lucy (Work). "Answer."

"Hey Lucy, how has your day been?"

"Tough… I've been doing hand to hand with Mira."

"Yeah, that sounds rough, has she been going easy on you?"

"I'm not sure… I mean her punches and kicks really hurt."

"Well if she isn't breaking any bones or damaging your joints, then I wouldn't worry all that much about it, Lucy."

"Why is that?"

"Well you are a normal mage, going up against a Fairy Tail Agent, we are much stronger than regular mages, and even Agents from other agencies, and that's due to our Enhancement."

"You've told me that a lot, I asked Levy for more information on it and it's really something."

"Yeah, I'll probably tell you more when it comes time for you to undergo it, but when you do then you'll feel like a new person."

"So what have you been up to Natsu? You weren't at HQ in your usual area."

"Had a local job, just had to pay someone a visit to get some intel, came across something you may really like, you might have to ask Makarov if he has anything you may be interested in."

The woman perked up, her eagerness to work showing in her voice. "What was it?!"

"I suppose I can tell you, the Old Man would have told you anyway. It was a special key, a golden gate key, it was in the hands of a black market dealer recently and we have tracked the buyer, we just need to do a bit more recon to make sure that it is in his possession, then we can make a move to recover the magical artefact and keep it out of the wrong hands."

"A Key!"

"Hey, easy on the ears. Yeah, it was a golden celestial key, but I don't know if we will get clearance to move on that or our other target, the other artefact he was selling was an extremely dangerous one in the wrong hands."

"Sorry, I'm just so excited that I've come across another one, my mother used to have all twelve before she spread them around Fiore."

"We have a record of their movements as well as who is where. Levy could probably tell you more. You two seem to get along really well."

Natsu pulled up at a set of red lights, he glanced around and spotted a patrol car with familiar numbers. He focused his eyes on the occupants of the car and saw both Alexia and Allie.

"Hey Lucy, I gotta go. I'm meeting up with someone for lunch and I'm almost there. I'll see you in my office later to see how you are coming along."

"Alright, bye Natsu."

The call ended as the lights Natsu was stopped at turned green, he grinned in his helmet and dropped the clutch as he twisted the throttle.

The front tyre of the motorcycle rose off the street as he sailed through the intersection on his rear tyre, cheekily waving to the two cops in the patrol car as he went flying past them.

The supercharged H2R screamed through its exhaust pipes as he continued down the road on one wheel, he heard the screeching of rubber followed by blearing sirens as the cop car raced after him.

The pinkette chuckled with glee as he dropped the tyre back to the road and accelerated even faster, but he made sure that the officers could keep him in sight.

He played cat and mouse with the two officers for a bit longer, making sure no one was put in danger by his antics as he handled his bike like a professional racer.

After a few quick minutes, he pulled into a free spot in front of the café that he and the officers chasing him were to meet up, he was followed into the parking spots by the patrol car which took the spot next to him.

Natsu took his helmet off and shut down his bike as the two female officers stepped out of their car, they both looked furious but to Natsu's trained eyes he could see that underneath the mask, they had enjoyed the little game.

"I should arrest you for that, or at the very least I should fine you." Officer Rose said as she stood by the man with her hands on her hips.

The pinkette smirked and held out his wrists for the policewoman. "Front or back?"

Allie wore a barely visible smirk on her face as she walked around the car to stand with her fellow officer. "How about this, pay for lunch and we'll turn the other way?"

"That sounds a lot like bribery…" Natsu replied as he scratched the stubble on his chin in mock thought, he chuckled. "Sure, why not."

The two women chuckled at the situation and lead the way into the shop, Alexia looked over her shoulder at the pinkette. "You handled that bike like a pro, got a history with bikes?"

"Yeah, I grew up around cars and bikes, gotten to a stage where they are basically an extension of my own body."

The owner of the café looked up at the sound of the pinkette, she smiled and waved to the man. "Natsu! Come in, how has your day been?"

"Hey, Ruby. It's alright, been out of the office most of today, great to have the fresh air in my lungs."

"Are you eating with the officers today?"

"Yup, got a table for three?"

The woman smiled at the trio and came out from around the counter. "Follow me, we have one by the window."

She led the group to the table, picking up two menus along the way. "I take it you'll have your usual, Natsu? The Gourmet Burger with the lot, side of chips with chicken salt and a choc mint thickshake?"

"Sounds perfect Ruby." The man said with a carefree smile, he took a seat at the table they were shown to.

Ruby placed the two menus on the table for the two police officers as they sat down. She pulled out her notepad and wrote down the order.

Alexia looked up from her menu to the café owner. "I'll have a Teriyaki Chicken Salad Wrap with a Coke."

"And I'll have Steak Sandwich with a Sprite." Allie said, finishing off the trio's order.

Ruby smiled and wrote down the orders. "I'll have that made up as soon as possible, would you like a slice of your choice of cake? It's on the house."

Natsu smiled at the woman. "In that case, I'll have a double chocolate mousse cake."

The officers spoke to each other quietly, Alexia turned to the lady and smiled. "We'll have a slice of red velvet cake each."

"Great choices, I'll bring them out once you are finished with your main course." Ruby replied as she wrote the final details down, she turned on her heel with a smile and went back behind the counter.

"Do you come here often Natsu?" Allie asked, curiously. "Ruby seems to know you well."

"Once or twice a week, they have good food and good service."

"Sounds like we need to come here more often." Alexia said.

"So what have you two been up to since we met at that petrol station?" Natsu asked the two officers, leaning back in his chair as his eyes instinctively searched the café.

"Oh, just patrolling, pulling people over and fining them if needed, attending callouts." Allie replied.

"Yeah, every now and then we get the odd callout, like this one a few weeks back, apparently there was this chase and shootout on the highway between here and Hargeon. When we got on scene we found crashed cars and bikes, dead people in cars and on the roads." Alexia continued as she looked to her partner.

"That sounds strange, like something out of a movie?" Natsu said as he focused on the two women in front of him.

"Yeah, we thought the same thing when we saw it, it looked right out of an action movie. Some of the eyewitnesses said they saw a bike jump into the back of a helicopter…"

"Sounds like some James Bond if you ask me." Natsu chimed in with a carefree grin. "Or something from another action movie like that. The A-Team maybe?"

The two women started laughing and the pinkette joined in, Alexia wiped a tear from her eyes. "I'll be honest, when I got home from that callout I was craving a good action movie."

"Oh, Allie, I never caught your last name."

She smiled at the pink-haired man. "It's Jordan. Allie Jordan, or Officer Jordan if I am on duty."

Natsu gave the officer a nod as Ruby came back with their orders, the trio gave her their thanks and they dug into their food with ravenous intent.

Half an hour passed as the trio had their lunch, Natsu rose from his seat. "As promised." He smiled. "It's all on me."

He headed up to the counter causing Ruby to look up and smiles at the pinkette. "All finished Natsu?"

"Yup, thanks for the delicious food again Ruby, thank Rick for me too, you found yourself a great chef."

As Natsu reached into his pocket to get out his wallet, he saw Ruby go stiff, her eyes widened in shock, followed by the cold steel muzzle of a handgun press against the back of Natsu's head.

The pinkette heard the hammer get cocked back and he removed his hand from his pocket, his eyes hardened as his carefree expression vanished. "Judging by that click and the shape of the muzzle, you have a Smith & Wesson pressed against my head, most likely a .357 snub judging by where I can hear your breathing."

"Nice guess, now you are going to stay there while that lovely lady behind the counter gives me all the money." Said the thug.

"What a fool you are, look to your right pal. You're robbing a place that has two police officers inside, didn't you see the cop car parked outside?"

"Huh?" The thug said as he turned his attention away from the pinkette, his revolver lifting off the man's head.

The agent grinned at the opening he just created, he quickly turned around and flicked the thug's wrist up into the air so the weapon points to the roof.

"What the fuck!?" The thug shouts, tearing his eyes off the two officers who had their pistols drawn and aimed at the robber.

Salamander quickly followed it up with a sharp blow to the elbow, ripping the tendons and destroying the joint, making the man drop his gun out of reflex from the pain as his arm painfully bends in the wrong direction.

"Gah Fuck!" The thug shouted. The two officers lowered their guns as they watched the scene unfold, the man they thought was this calm, kind and carefree guy… he was a machine that picked apart his opponent at their weak spots.

The agent followed the blow with a knee to the thug's solar plexus as he caught the revolver, causing him to become winded and double over, Sal then grabbed the man's good arm and twisted it around and behind the thug's back, pushing the man down and forward so he lands against the counter, the muzzle of the. 357 coming to rest against his temple.

The whole interaction to mere moments to unfold, perfectly executed with professional precision, there was a pregnant silence for a full minute before a click spread across the café.

The agent de-cocked the hammer and flipped the gun over in his hand, catching the muzzle and holding the grip out for the two officers. "Sorry, heat of the moment."

The two officers had to pick their jaws off the floor, this regular, albeit pink-haired, man just disarmed a gunman in an instant, Officer Rose took a step forwards then shook her head and moved to the pinkette. "I've got it from here."

Natsu's carefree grin returned as he handed the revolver off to Officer Jordan and took a step back. "All your's."

The officers escorted the man to their car and sat him in the back seat, Natsu turned to Ruby and gave her a soft smile. "Eventful day, isn't it?"

Ruby just nodded her head, she was dumbfounded by what she just witnessed, her favourite customer changed, from a carefree idiot to a professional… something, right before her eyes, her eyes snapped to the man's hand as it waved in front of her. "Huh?"

"How much do I owe ya?" The man asked with a happy smile, making her forget what happened as she returned his smile.

"$36.80." She replied.

Natsu took out his wallet and handed her a $100 bill, he closed her hand over it with a genuine smile. "Keep the change, for the troubles."

Ruby bowed to the man. "Thank you kindly, Natsu, I'll see you next time?"

"Of course you will Ruby, one little brawl won't stop me from coming back."

The man waved over his shoulder as he left the café, he came face to face with the two police officers, and he looked at them with surprise as his eyes moved from one to the other. "How may I help you two?"

"Where did you learn to fight like that?" Allie asked, her voice laced with eager curiosity.

"I've been doing self-defence classes since I was little, gotta know how to stay safe, ya know?"

"Yeah but… the way you moved, how quickly and fluid it was, not to mention how you handled that revolver." Alexis continued.

"Don't think too far into it." Natsu replied as he brought up his hands in defence. "Like I said, I've been doing it for a long time, and we were taught how to deal with any likely situation."

"I'll guess we'll have to take your word for it? Anyway, thanks for the help. It could have gotten messy if it was anyone else." Alexis said as she shook the pinkette's hand. "Now, about that ride?"

Natsu's smile turned into a playful grin as he looked at both of the cops. "How does this sound; since you have a perp in the back, how about we race to the precinct? Alexis and I on my H2R vs Allie in the patrol car?"

"Sounds like a plan! Are we placing a bet?" Allie said eagerly as she bounced on the balls of her feet, she was in love with the bike too but not as much as her partner, Alexis was.

"How does another lunch sometime down the line sound?" Natsu said as he pointed his thumb over his shoulder at the Café.

"I like it hehe." Said Alexis as she rubbed her hands together, a devilish glint in her eyes as she looked at her friend/partner.

Natsu walked over to his bike and picked up his helmet. "Here, best you have this, oh and you should probably wear my jacket so it won't be so obvious that you are a police officer." He made his way back to Alexis and handed his helmet to her, then he unzipped his jacket and took it off, having requipped his weapons away once he left the Ghetto.

"Thanks." The officer replied as she carefully put the offered equipment on. "Hopefully we don't get in trouble for this."

"You only live once, right?" Allie said as she walked to the driver's side of the patrol car.

The pinkette smiled as he got onto his bike, he watched the officer walk to him and slip her leg over the back of the motorcycle and got comfy behind the man, holding onto his waist.

Natsu started the bike and cheekily motioned to Officer Jorden that she can have a head start and watched as she pulled out and raced off, he gave her a minute or two before he spun the rear type, swinging the bike around to face the road and launching after the patrol car, Alexia cheering loudly behind him.

He raced down the road, swerving in and around cars as he chased down the cop car, he kept his focus as he manoeuvred the bike, dodging damage by a hair's breadth.

Allie braked hard in her cop car as she came up to a corner, her lights and sirens blaring as she charged around the corner, the H2R hot on her tail as the pinkette took the corner hard, almost laying on his side as he flung it around the intersection.

Natsu sling-shotted past the car as he twisted the throttle, making the bike rear up as he roared down the road.

After five quick minutes of hard-charging through the city streets, Natsu rolled into the parking spots in front of the precinct, allowing Alexia to hop off the back of the bike and stand unsteadily on her own two feet.

"WOOOO~!" She threw her arms in the air and then slowly gave the man his things back. "That was exhilarating!"

"I'm glad you enjoyed it, so what are your thoughts on the bike?"

"Fun, very very fun." She bounced on the balls of her feet, getting feeling back into her legs. "Makes me really want one."

The patrol car pulled into the free spot next to the motorcycle and out stepped Allie. "Alexis, give me a hand with the bastard in the back will you, he got a bit nuts with the casual drive back here."

"Ah, we can't have that. I think that falls under resisting arrest, maybe?" Officer Rose replied with a grin.

"Maybe so, best to deal with him before any further struggle happens." Officer Jordan said, matching her partner's grin with her own.

"We'll see you around Natsu, thanks for lunch." Officer Rose said as she gave him a wink, she moved to the back doors of the patrol car and wrangled the perp out, and with Officer Jordan's help they took him inside.

The pinkette chuckled, enjoying the somewhat questionable antics of the two police officers. He watched them until they disappeared into the precinct. 'Alright, what's the time?'

He checks his phone for the time and puts it away as he heads back out onto the road. 'Time to show my face at HQ.'

**0=0=0=0=0=0=0=0=0=0=0**

**FT HQ, Waterfront District, Magnolia**

"Ouch, Shit." Lucy groaned out as she was met with a particularly hard punch to the stomach.

"In the short time that you have been Natsu's protégé, it seems you have taken on his rather coarse way of speaking, haven't you?" Mira giggled as she adjusted her MMA gloves slightly.

"Oh shove it up your ass, Mira." Lucy said as she caught her breath again, readying herself for another bout.

"Would you like a break for a drink or should we continue?"

"One more round, then yes."

Mira brought her arms up and watched the busty blonde woman, she flicked her fingers towards herself with a grin, gesturing Lucy forward. "Alright then, come at me."

* * *

**Well, that's it for this chapter. I hope you liked it, I'm trying to develop pathways for the story as well as do some character development, the storyline is vaguely similar to the main canon, except that I will be removing or changing things as I see fit but there will be familiar aspects to the story, it should set up familiar story beats and potential plot twists, well at least that is what I hope.**

**I also hope you liked the mini-chapter that I posted not that long ago, I felt that you deserved to know what exactly happened to Lisanna and Natsu when they were captured, and it also sets up plot points and develops the characters, I had wrote it for CLoaDs (my other story) and in the transfer to its true home I made a few minor changes, wording mainly, Natsu turned into Agent Salamander, unless spoken by the characters themselves in the times of stress. **

**Development wise, think of it as this; the reason Mira never lost her power, and still acts like a total gothic badass, is because her sister never 'Died' instead she was captured, leading to Lisanna's distrust in men that weren't her brother and Natsu, and to a lesser extent, the male agents of FTA, her trust in Natsu is shown in how openly flirty she can be with the pinkette, and how much of her body she is willing to put on display for the man.**

**Now, I think that is enough Info Dumping for today, let's wrap things up shall we? Again, I hope you enjoyed the chapter, leave a review if you are willing as I accept ideas and input readily and will endeavour to work them into the story. With that all said and done, I'll see you all next time!**


	11. Chapter 11

A busty blonde woman sat in the infirmary, she was being seen to by a doctor for a check-up due to some sore joints. It had been a little over a month since Natsu had visited the dealer down in the Kelbey District. The days were getting colder as the year moved into the winter months and the first signs of snow had started to fall.

Her trainers had been very tough on her recently, she began to think that either something was happening or someone was pushing for results.

A few days ago, Lucy managed to sneak onto Natsu's computer in his office while he and Mira were at lunch and what she found had surprised her.

According to the training schedule that was created by Natsu's brother, Zeref, she was ahead of schedule by a few weeks.

She had to admit, Natsu and Mira were insane when it came to hand-to-hand combat, Natsu had strength and speed but thanks to Mira's very flexible body, she was able to bend and slither her way around the man.

It was not only hand-to-hand that Natsu excelled at, but she had also noticed that he was a crack shot when it came to all types of weaponry. When she asked him about it, the answer she got back was very short. 'Training, and a lot of it.'

Lucy's body had changed too, she had developed quite a bit of muscle, and thanks to Natsu's supervision, she had even developed muscles she didn't even know she had, 'No wasted effort, everything must be honed.' Was what the pinkette had told her, frequently.

"Excuse me Miss Heartfilia." Said a soft female voice, bringing Lucy's attention back out from her inner monologue.

"Oh, sorry Mary, I must have zoned out." The agent-in-training said as she looked up at the nurse attending to her, she was fairly slim with a kind looking face and bubble-gum pink hair.

"It's quite alright. You seem to be in good health, a little banged up but from the intensity that you have been working out." The nurse said as she handed her the read-up on her condition.

"Yeah, Natsu is a tough man to please sometimes." Confirmed Lucy as she watched the woman in light blue scrubs head to a nearby folder.

"Mr Dragneel takes pride in his job. To him, one can work the best when they themselves are at their best." Mary said as she flicked through her notes, she made a small noise of surprise. "I'm sorry Miss Heartfilia, but I seem to have missed something, I am to take a vial of your blood."

"Oh. That's fine." She replied as she held out her arm. For her it was routine to have some blood taken to be tested, she figured that it was just to check for any contaminants or something in her bloodstream.

Knock knock

The two women turned to look at the door, there stood a tall, tanned, pinkette in black pants, red Mortal Kombat shirt with a black leather jacket over it. "Hey Luce, Mary, I hope I'm not interrupting."

"Mr Dragneel, how are you?" Asked the nurse with a bright smile.

"I'm good. Just dropped Happy off at school." He replied as he strolled into the room and took a seat at the nurse's desk.

"How are his grades?" Mary murmured as she leant down, reading the clipboard that sat on top of her desk.

Lucy could have sworn that she saw the nurse unbutton her top next to the pinkette.

"They are going good Mary. He could do better but hey, C's become Doctors am I right?"

"You are right Mr Dragneel, I bet you love seeing C's don't you~." She purred quietly and seductively into the man's ear.

"I like them all Little Miss Mary." Natsu replied, whispering huskily back into her ear. "Especially C's."

Lucy cleared her throat loudly. "Umm, Mary, you are supposed to take my blood…"

The nurse squeaked quietly in embarrassment, she kind of forgot that she was still attending to a patient. "Sorry Miss Heartfilia, I got distracted." She subtly fixed her scrubs and gathered what she needed to take her blood.

The blonde rolled her eyes. "Don't worry, I'm used to it when Natsu is in the vicinity."

"Sorry Mary, I didn't come for a social visit, maybe next time you can give me a thorough check-up." The pinkette chimed in as he watched the nurse start to take Lucy's blood.

"I'll be looking forward to it Mr Dragneel."

Natsu grinned to himself as he started to read Lucy's medical file though he already had it memorised, it just gave him something to do while he waited for Nurse Mary to finish with his protégé.

"There you go Miss Heartfilia, you are free to go." The young pink-haired woman said as she sealed the vial of blood and handed it off to Natsu. "And you, stop reading her file, naughty man." She chided him playfully as she gave him a soft smack against his upper arm.

The pinkette gave his retort in the form of sticking his tongue out at her. He slowly rose from the chair and walked past her. "Come on Luce, we have things to do." Natsu said as his hand swung back, gently spanking the nurse's ass as he gave her a wink over his shoulder. "Oops, sorry."

"Ok playboy, stop teasing your bunny and let's get back to the office." Lucy said as she grabbed his arm and started to tug him out of the room. "Thanks for the check-up Mary."

"Anytime Miss Heartfilia, I'll see you next time."

"Cya Little Miss Mary." Natsu said with one last look over his shoulder, watching the nurse blow him a kiss. He let Lucy tug him out of the hospital and into the company's halls above the surface.

Once they were in the HQ, Natsu dropped the carefree and playful demeanour for a more professional and serious one. His posture straightened up fully which caused Lucy to release him and fall in-step with her superior. "Come with me to R&D. It is time you are shown around it."

"Really?!" The woman half-shouted in surprise as she looked up at the man.

The pinkette glanced down at her and flashed a small smile. "Yes, what you will be seeing is prototype technology, things that are still in various stages of development. When I was saving you from that ship I had some prototype gear on me, though I didn't get to use it all that much as things went to hell."

Lucy's short black skirt swished around her thighs as she stepped in front of the man and spun around to face him, she walked backwards and had her hands clasped behind her back. Her hair glowed gold in the sunlight let in through the windows. "So what will we be doing there?"

"Giving them this." He held up the vial of blood. "And while we are there we will be getting you measured for combat gear, meeting people, and probably getting you to test out some of the equipment there."

"Why am I only just getting measured?" Lucy asked, she was confused and thought that would have been done right away.

"Because Lucy, your measurements would have changed with all that training we have been doing. For instance, your arms have developed more defined muscles, your stomach is tighter, and you have thicker and stronger thighs and calf muscles."

The blonde woman blushed due to his analysis of her physical progress, she looked down at herself and noticed that Natsu was right, she had changed a lot in her short time at Fairy Tail.

"Hey, Natsu!" Called out a female voice from behind them.

Natsu looked over his shoulder and Lucy looked around his body, the both saw a brunette in Multicam pants and a black bikini top, her boots thumping on the floor softly as she strolled over to them with a slight stagger in her steps.

"Sup Cana, how are you?" Natsu asked as they came to a stop.

"Not bad. What are you two up to, sneaking off to a quiet area to knock boots I hope?" Cana replied with a slightly slurred voice.

"No!" Shouted the blonde, she was embarrassed at the lush's insinuation. She turned her head and looked out at Magnolia City, starting to blush under the gaze of the pinkette as he looked her up and down, appraisingly.

"As much as I love teasing, now probably isn't the best time." Natsu said as he started walking again, moving around the flustered agent-in-training. "I'm taking her to the R&D department."

"Is it that time already?" Cana asked as she came up next to the man with Lucy on his other side.

"We'll see about that Cana, it might just be time for it?"

Lucy looked between the two agents, trying to work out what they were talking about. "Time for what?"

"I'll tell you later." Natsu said.

"And I'll tell you now." Slurred the sloshed woman with a drunken grin, she threw an arm around the pinkette and leaned on him. "We were talking about the Enhancement process."

"You still haven't told me anything about it, I've only heard snippets from Mira." Lucy said as she watched them.

"It a serum, you will lay in an injection rig and are put to sleep, then the machine will scan you to find the correct injection sites and then it will inject the serum into you, all while you are asleep so you won't feel a thing." Natsu told her, he glared at Cana for forcing his hand. "The blood sample in the vial I am holding will be mixed into the latest iteration of the serum that is available to Agents, I tested it not long before you joined."

"That's about the gist of it." Cana said as she took a sip of her bottle of rum. "It isn't as scary as it may sound."

The agents looked at Lucy and saw that she had gone pale, Cana looked at her fellow agent. "Guess she hated the term injection rig?"

"Could be worse, at least one of the sites isn't on the ass."

"I heard a story from someone in the Fiorian Military that there was this really sadistic nurse, they'd line up all the people who needed this one specific shot that had to go in the arse and then they'd play darts with the needle…" Natsu said as the threesome entered an elevator. "And their arses. They couldn't sit for a week."

"Ouch." Lucy said as she shuddered at the thought, her hands shot to her ass to cover it.

"So where are you heading, Cana?" The pinkette asked as he placed his hands behind his head.

"Going to work out with Mira, hopefully she doesn't want to spa with me."

"Huh, why is that?" Lucy asked, curiously, turning to look at the brunette. "She seems fairly easy to spar with."

"You haven't had your enhancement yet blondie, she would be going easy on you so she doesn't break anything." Cana replied after taking a sip of rum. "Want some, hot stuff?"

"Sure." Natsu said as he took the offered bottle. "As she said, Lucy, Mira would be going easy on you, she'd be treating you like an operative instead of an agent, but expect your training to be ramped up after you have adjusted to the enhancements, resisting enhanced interrogation techniques will be included."

"How will that help?" The blonde asked curiously.

"Well, unless you get some sadistic fuck like the one that did in Macao…" He said as he grit his teeth in anger and took a mouthful of rum. "The training is designed to help you hold out against anything they throw at you."

"Have you found out who was the one that did that to Macao, Natsu?" Cana asked as she took the bottle from him, or else she might not have any rum left for herself.

"It was definitely that PMC, Phantom Lord. It is either one of their ace squads or the head himself." The pinkette said, his hands curling into fists slowly.

"PMC?" Lucy asked, her eyes drawn to the man's fists.

"Private Military Corporation. Like us they take contracts from the government and the royal family, but they are a military force whereas we are covert operations specialists. More akin to intelligence agencies." Natsu explained, he slowly started to relax again and placed his hands behind his head once more. "But we both have our own interests of course."

"If we're the doctor's scalpel, they are the demolitionist's sledgehammer." The brunette added as she started to shuffle her tarot cards.

"Do they have agents too?" Lucy asked as the elevator doors opened.

"Not like ours, they do have mages but they aren't like us, they don't have any enhancements as Phantom Lord prefers massive numbers instead of a smaller force of highly skilled, essentially super soldiers. It would be too costly for them to do it." Cana said while stepping out of the elevator. "I'll see you two around."

"Hey Cana, feel like having a drink or two later with me?" Natsu asked as he hit the button to take them down to the sub-levels.

"Sounds good to me, I'll find you later when I am free." The brunette replied as the doors slid shut.

There was silence for a few moments with the only sound being that of elevator music, Lucy looked up at the man. "Sooo, R&D time?"

"Yep. I'll have to get you a pass to get past the security." Natsu said with an annoyed groan.

"Why do I need a pass?"

"Because you haven't got the clearance to be there on your own yet, and need to be issued a pass to get past the multi-layer security."

The pinkette rubbed his face with his free hand. As much as it annoyed him, there was a very good reason for the high security.

"So where do we get the pass?"

"There is a security office not far from the elevator, we'll go there and I'll have to sign some things to have you issued the pass."

"What do I need to do?"

"Stay close by and look pretty, that's it." He replied as he cracked his neck. He started to twirl the vial in his fingers while waiting for the doors to open. "You already have the latter on lockdown."

"Are you hitting on me, Agent Salamander?" Lucy asked, a smirk growing on her face as she crossed her arms under her bust. "I don't think that is what Makarov meant by 'looking after' me."

"No, never, just giving you a compliment." He said, a small chuckle hidden in his baritone voice. "We should almost be there."

True to his word, the doors opened moments later with a ding, allowing the duo passage into the R&D level.

"Follow me, and remember to stay close." Natsu said as he walked over to the security desk. "Hey Frank, I need a security pass for Agent Celeste."

A man in his fifties looked up from his monitor that had today's news on it, his eyes went from the pinkette then to the beautiful blonde that stood to his side. "Ah, so this is the new agent that I have heard about, quite the looker. Will she be assisting Mira in high profile infiltrations?"

"Probably, she has got a background in high-class etiquette so she'd be a natural in those types of missions." The man replied as he looked to his protégé, she looked a little red in the face from embarrassment.

"A big difference than your background, Agent Salamander." Frank said as he rose from his chair and walked to the filing cabinet.

"Huh?" Lucy looked up at the pinkette. "What does he mean by that?"

"I was a bad-mannered brat growing up." Natsu replied, shrugging his shoulders as he leaned on the security office window.

"That's putting it mildly kid, here is the form." The old man said as he handed them to the pinkette.

"You know, Natsu, it has been over a month since you became my teacher yet I still feel like I don't know anything about you aside from your age and some of the things you have told me, like what you and Lisanna went through."

"Poor girl, she didn't deserve that…" Frank said as he waited for the pinkette to sign the papers. "Hasn't been the same since."

"She is getting better Frank, but the only men she trusts are Elfman and myself, and to some lesser extent, Gray, as he was part of the rescue team."

"At least she is improving, when we were told what happened, we were all shocked. More so when they released the footage to the company, of course Lisanna's body was blurred, but we all knew what had happened…"

Natsu slid the form back to the man and took the I.D. tag. "I forgot to mention, Frank here is a former Operative."

"You were an Operative, Frank?" Lucy asked, surprised, as her eyes were drawn away from the tag that Natsu was putting on her top.

"Yeah, I retired a few years ago, took a bullet in the knee and that ended my service, but the Director offered to pay me injury compensation and a job here as one of the guards. Took the job in a heartbeat and graciously accepted the compensation."

"Alright. Time for us to go inside, catch you later Frank." Natsu said as he turned to leave.

"Agent Salamander, one moment, have you talked to Romeo recently… he stopped coming around to hang out with my son the other week."

"No, sorry Frank. I haven't spoken to him since I brought his dad back… I think the guy despises me."

"He wouldn't despise you, kid. You are his hero, remember?"

"Were, Frank, not are." The agent replied softly as he left the security booth, the blonde hot on his heels.

They headed down the short hall that led to the R&D facility. Lucy looked up at the man and quietly broke the silence that had permeated the air for a good few moments. "Natsu… Are you alright?"

"No, sorry Lucy, but it's not something I want to talk about right now." He replied as he walked up to a set of doors that were locked with a biometric scanner. "Use your tag to unlock the lock."

"Oh, ok." Said softly as she grabbed the pass and placed it on the pad, there was a distinct click as the doors parted for the blonde.

"In you go, I'll be right behind you."

Lucy stepped through the doorway and was faced with technicians and scientists roaming around with various gadgets and weapons. "I don't know what I expected…"

"This is only the very front of the facility, it gets crazier the further you go back, and the testing rooms are fairly hectic too." Natsu said as he walked past the woman.

"Agent Salamander!" Shouted a black woman as she jogged over with her clipboard.

"Hello, Sophie. How can I help you? Oh, this is Agent Celeste by the way." The pinkette said as he gestured to the nearby blonde.

"It's nice to finally meet you, Agent Celeste." Sophie said as she gave her a bow of her head. "Agent Salamander, have you been able to give that Tac-com I gave you a proper test run?"

"Yes, it handled very well, definitely faster than the previous model."

"I'm glad to hear that. Agent Celeste, please follow me for a second, I have to give you the current Tac-com." The scientist said, briskly, as she turned on the spot and jogged back to her work station.

Lucy looked up at the man, speaking quietly so the woman wouldn't hear her. "Didn't you already give me one? You told me to keep it in my pocket dimension, so I can requip it when needed and won't lose it."

"I did, but Sophie will be giving you the model I had on me when I found you on that ship, I've got one model after that one."

"Because you are basically a guineapig?"

"I prefer the term "Field Tester"… But basically, yes I am." Natsu replied as he followed the black woman. "Hey Sophie, which model is it?"

"The one you have now, I figured that since word is that you are training her, then she should have access to the same equipment as you do. Is that fine with you, Sir?"

"I can't fault your logic." The pinkette said, he nodded his head at his blonde companion, letting Sophie know that he approves of her decision.

The scientist opened a draw nearby and handed the device to the female agent. "Don't lose it, Ma'am."

"I won't, thanks." Lucy replied as she requipped it away for safekeeping. "Where to next, Natsu?"

"Straight to the Doctor, she'll look after you." He replied as he started to make his way through the department.

"Doctor? Do you mean Doctor Porlyusica?"

"That's the one, she handles the Enhancement process, so don't worry as you'll be in good hands."

"That's… actually very reassuring, at least I know I'll be in good hands."

"Yup." Natsu said as they walked passed an opening door, the man that stepped out was the raven-haired agent, Gray.

"Sup Natsu, Lucy, what are you two up to?"

"Taking Lucy for the Enhancement."

"Ah. It's that time already?" Gray responded with a low whistle. "It's an experience I tell you, Lucy. When you wake up you'll still feel normal but when you go to do stuff, like running or fighting, you'll notice right away. It takes a few hours to get used to it but you learn to live with the changes very easily."

"Alright, what have you been up to Gray, we haven't seen you all week?" Lucy asked, curiously.

"Was on an assignment, had to intercept a transport that was carrying Lullaby, it was tough but I managed it."

"Huh, I was wondering who was going to get that job." Natsu said as he started to twirl the vial of blood in his fingers again. "I'm guessing you just put it in the Vault just then?"

"Yeah." The raven-haired agent said, nodding as he pointed over his shoulder with his thumb. "I actually just got back maybe half an hour ago. Oh, if you see Levy then be careful, she is in a mood today, and she is working on explosives…"

"Ah shit, hopefully she doesn't blow up anything important." The pinkette said as he rubbed his face with his free hand. "She must be having a bad day."

"Well, if you see her, watch what you say, that little woman packs a hell of a backhand." Gray said as he started to head for the exit. "See you guys around."

"See you, Gray." They both said as they watched him leave.

"Alright, let's go." Natsu said as he went to Porlyusica's office in the R&D department. He knocked on the door and waited for a response.

"Who is bothering me?!" Came the pink-haired doctor's voice from inside the room, the door opened to reveal the woman. "Oh, it is just you, and Agent Celeste. I take it that you have decided she is ready?"

"Yes, Doctor, here is the blood you need." The man said, handing over the vial and stepping back so she could lead the way to the machine.

"Come with me Agents. Celeste, the process will leave you sore but I'll put you asleep so you won't feel any pain during the process, I recommend a full day's rest after the treatment." The doctor looked over her shoulder. "And you better damn well take my advice."

As they entered the room that housed the Enhancement Machine, Lucy was taken aback, she had expected more than something that just looked like an odd reclined chair.

"Take a seat, Celeste. Salamander, give me that vial." Porlyusica ordered, bossily, as she made her way to the control panel.

Lucy sat down in the strange chair and wiggled slight to make sure she is comfortable. "So why was my blood needed for this?"

"It's a carrier agent for the serum, Lucy. Basically they'll mix the serum with it then inject it back into your body so it can flow throughout your body freely." Natsu said as he moved to her side.

"Celeste, please remove all of your clothes, they'll be in the way of the machine. I'm going to get the serum ready for injection." The doctor ordered as she left the room with the vial.

"Want me to wait outside, Lucy?" Natsu asked his protégé.

"No, I would prefer the company, just try not to stare too much. Please." She replied as she rose up off the machine.

"I should probably help you, if she comes back and you aren't ready then she'll get crabby." The pinkette said as he started to undo the belt that held her skirt to her waist snuggly.

"Will she?"

"Trust me, I learnt it the hard way."

"Oh." Lucy said as she started to lift up her top. "What happened?"

"Let's just say she is a very short-tempered and easily angered woman and leave it at that." He replied as he slipped the belt out of the hoops in the skirt and unzipped her skirt.

"How does the machine work?" The busty blonde woman asked as she lifted her tight black shirt up over her breasts, they dropped down and bounced slightly as they sat on her chest freely. She blushed as she saw his eyes drop to her tits. "Don't stare."

"Sorry, they just caught my eye, I didn't realise you didn't have a bra on." Natsu said as he knelt down to slide the skirt and her underwear off, along with her shoes and socks.

"They get really uncomfortable a lot of the time. You'd be surprised how often I am not wearing one."

"I can understand why, considering how big they are." He said as he collected up all the clothes and placed them on a nearby desk. "I'll leave these here for you."

"Alright." Lucy said as she sat back down. "Eeep! It's cold!"

"Just try to ignore it."

Porlyusica returned with two female nurses in tow. "Ah good, you are all ready, Celeste. Alice, can you get the machine set up for the transfusion."

"Yes ma'am." Said the black-haired nurse as she started to put sealed glass containers into a panel on the wall, they contained an orange liquid.

"What are those?" Lucy asked, curiously.

"Special containers that contain a mixture of your blood and the serum." Natsu said as he leant on the wall nearby the chair. "Built specifically for this purpose."

"Camina, put Agent Celeste to sleep. It is time." Porlyusica said from the machine's control panel.

"Right away, Doctor." Replied with the nurse with pale red hair as she moved to the blonde's head, she placed her hands by her head as they glow a faint blue.

Lucy yawned as her eyes started to get heavy. "Natsu, you don't have to stick around, I'll find you when it is all done."

"I'll stay for a bit." Natsu replied as he watched her pass out. "That was quick, usually people take a few minutes to go under, she tapped out in less than a minute."

"Activating the machine now, Salamander could you place her arms and legs into position."

"Alright." The pink-haired agent said as he placed her arms and legs in the right positions on the machine.

Restraints emerged from the chair and wrapped around her ankles and wrists, holding them in place as a medical injection rig comes out of the wall. The chair reclined further until the blonde woman was lying flat on her back.

"I'm seeing green across the board, the rig is primed and ready for transfusion." Porlyusica said as she started to engage the machine. "Step back, Agent Salamander."

"Yeah, yeah, I know." He said as he stepped away from the medical machine.

The machine scanned Lucy's body and marked every injection site with a laser as hypodermic needles extended from the rig and slowly pierced the woman's skin.

"Beginning Enhancement Therapy." The doctor announced as she started injecting the serum into the agent.

Quiet rock music filled the room causing all eyes to turn to Natsu. "Sorry, I'll step out and answer this."

The man left the room and took out his phone, he saw that it was Makarov. "Sir, how can I help you?"

"We have a situation." Makarov said, seriously. "We have received intel that there is an arms deal happening in Calico City. A terror cell is receiving weapons from an unknown supplier, we need you on the ground in Calico ASAP."

"Rodger that, Sir."

"You'll receive your mission briefing at the safe house in the city, Agent Osprey is currently at the safe house so she may be free to lend you sniper support."

"Affirmative, Sir, I'll head out right away." Natsu said as he glanced back at the room. "Sir, Celeste has just gone under and will be out of commission all day with rehabilitation for her Enhancement."

"Thanks for keeping me up to date on her situation, I wonder what her side effect will be…"

"Only time will tell, Sir, I'll head out right away."

"I'll leave it in your capable hands then, I'll send Lisanna to look after Lucy."

"Thank you, Sir." Natsu said as he hung up, he stuck his head back inside the room. "Doc, I gotta run, I have an assignment."

"Off you go, Brat." Replied Porlyusica, she didn't take her eyes off the control panel as she had to monitor the blonde's vitals and the progress of the transfusion.

The pink-haired agent rushed through the R&D department, dodging the roaming scientists and technicians as he ran to the exit.

"Where's the fire, kid?" Asked Frank as the man bolted past the security office.

"Arms Deal in Calico." Natsu replied quickly as he broke out into a full sprint as he ran up the stairs.

He brought up his phone and used the speed dial to quickly call Mira, it took a few moments but the call finally went through. "Mira, I'm going to need you in operations in a few hours."

"Yeah, I just got off the phone with Makarov, I've got Levy digging up as much info so we can give you as much as you need out on the field. Be careful on the roads though, it has just started snowing again." Mira replied calmly though the speaker.

"I've had my car outfitted with studded snow tyres the other day. I should be alright for the winter weather."

"Watch out for traffic out there, I am pretty sure they wouldn't like having a black Hemicuda fly right past them."

"I'll be careful, Mira, don't worry about me. Could you keep an eye on Lucy, she is down in R&D right now, the old man said he is sending Lisanna to look after her but I would like you to be there too, oh and I need you to pick up Happy for me."

"I can do that for you, Natsu. I might even take Lucy to Operations so she could see how things work from my end."

"Alright, I'll see you when I get back."

"Good luck and safe travels." Mira replied and hung up, leaving the agent to run to the garage.

Natsu sprinted passed other agents and operatives, both were wondering what the man was up to as he flew by as a blur.

He ran to his car and quickly slid into the driver's seat, with a roar the car started.

The tyres squealed on the textured concrete as they momentarily fought for traction, finding it quickly as all four tyres put the powerful engine's enormous torque to the ground.

The car roared like a rampaging monster as it flew up the ramp and out into the streets surrounding the FTA.

Natsu tapped on the screen in the dash, he was going through his contacts until he found the one he wanted.

"Osprey here." Came Bisca's voice through the speakers.

"Osprey, it's Salamander, I've just been given an assignment in Calico and was told you were there?"

"Yeah, I am. Do you need a hand with it?"

Natsu raced through the traffic with seemingly reckless abandon but he precisely maneuvered the heavily modified muscle car around the city streets, ensuring that he didn't damage anything. "Probably. The Director told me that an arms deal is going down there and I need to be there for it to find out who is supplying these terror cells. I wouldn't mind some sniper support if things go pear-shaped."

"I'll see what I can do, have you been told any locations?"

"No, I'm hoping Archivist and Demon can tell me more once I am at the safe house."

"Alright, I'll put some food on when you get here."

"Thanks Osprey, I'll see you there."

Natsu hung up the phone call and continued to blitz down the roads, he blew past a police precinct just as a pair of female officers walked out, they caught a glimpse of pink hair in the fraction of a second that they had a clear view through the windshield.

The agent flung the car around a bend and up the ramp that led to the Princess Highway, he slid around the corner and floored the pedal.

The car roared viciously as it shot up the ramp, it launched a metre into the air at the top of the ramp and came down roughly, jolting the pinkette inside.

A flash of red and blue caught the man's eyes, he looked through the mirrors and spotted a police cruiser. "I don't have time for this shit."

He pushed the car to speeds that the officers could only wish to attain in their car, he sped away from the police car and charged on towards Calico City.

* * *

**Well that does it for another chapter, Lucy is finally getting her Enhancement Therapy and Natsu is being sent on another mission again. If you have any thoughts on what you may like to see happen then feel free to leave a review, I'll see if it fits the narrative of the story and try and find a way to work it in. Don't forget to follow and favourite to stay up to date with upcoming chapters, and with that all said, I hope you all have enjoyed and I'll see you next time.**


	12. Chapter 12

**Calico City, 6:47pm**

The calm winter night was torn asunder by the roaring V10 engine of Agent Salamander's Hemicuda.

Its beefy twin turbos force-fed the cold and dense winter air into the monster on wheels as it flew down the inner-city highways.

Inside the heated cabin, the pink-haired agent sipped a coffee that he had brought from a fast food restaurant, his sharp eyes glued to the road.

_**Beep Beep Beep**_

A light flickered to life on the screen in the centre of the dash, followed by scrolling text. 'Incoming Call: Director.'

The man tapped on the screen to answer the call. "Salamander here, how can I help you, Sir?"

"We have new intel on the arms deal."

"Let's hear it, Sir."

"The location of the deal will be in a storage facility in the Samus District, in the southern part of the city."

"Isn't that a warehouse district?" Agent Salamander asked as he slowed down and drove down an off-ramp and onto the city streets.

"It is. Unfortunately, we only know the general area that the meeting will be taking place. Archivist has gotten access to the CCTV cameras and has marked out an area of increased traffic and unusual activity."

"Send it to the safe house, I'll go over it once I arrive."

"Already been done, Salamander. Any luck with Osprey?"

"She said she may be able to help, providing there are suitable locations to provide support."

"Hmm. I have the map in front of me, I'll put down some markers for strategic positions. Do you still have that railgun?"

"Yes, Sir. I handed it over with some feedback to Archivist and she gave it back to me a few weeks later with some tweaks. You think I should lend it to Osprey?"

"Preferably. It is completely silent after all and it can penetrate civilian buildings and vehicles with extreme ease. I want this to stay as quiet as possible so the population doesn't know what is going on."

"We'll do our best, Sir."

"I know you two will. Once you get settled in at the safe house, contact HQ for briefing, we may have more to give you."

"Affirmative."

The screen flashed a red phone symbol as the cabin went silent once more.

The pink-haired agent let out a tired sigh, he was happy to be close to the house after such a long drive. "I wonder what Bisca has cooking."

The car rumbled quietly as it prowled the snowy streets, the man guiding it to safe haven as the outside temperature started to fall even further.

Sal pulled into the driveway as the clock ticked over to 7:17 pm, the snow had started to fall heavily around him as his breath came out in white puffs as he exited his vehicle.

"I hope this snow stops falling, I would rather not be in white-out conditions…"

The pinkette walked to the front door and unlocked it with a palm scanner built into the door frame, a voice called out from inside. "Natsu, that you?"

"Welcome Agent Salamander."

"Well Cherry says it's me, so I guess so." The man replied as he closed the door behind him and headed to the kitchen. "How are you Bisca?"

"Hungry, I started on dinner not long ago, it's a mild curry that will be put on some rice." The green-haired woman replied as she turned to greet him.

"How did your mission go?" Natsu asked as he took a seat at the table, his eyes were growing heavy.

"Almost without a hitch, the assassination failed but the charge took a bullet in the shoulder. They'll live though, so job is done and dusted."

"A bullet in the shoulder is still better than dying. Hopefully, they didn't bitch too much about it."

"They did a little bit." Bisca said as she turned the heat off on the stove and started to serve up their dinner. "Any idea what you mission entails?"

"It's an arms deal that will be happening in the Samus District."

"The warehouse district? That place is a maze, how are we supposed to find them in a place like that, not to mention it is snowing heavily so visibility will be shit."

"You'll be using the sniper rifle that Levy gave me, it has infrared night vision built into the smart scope so you should be able to see targets easily." The pinkette informed her as she placed a bowl down in front of the man and sat opposite him. "If I need you to take out things you can't see then I'll use the spider drones to mark targets, they'll show up on your HUD."

"Sounds like a plan, but I still need good locations to shoot from." Bisca said as she pointed her spoon at the agent. "Please tell me they found some spots."

"The old man said he has, he marked them on the map for our briefing."

"Well, we better dig in and get down there, luv."

"Sounds like a plan, Bisca."

The two agents ate their dinner in peaceful silence with the only sound, aside from the clinking of cutlery on crockery, being the News coming from the TV in the next room. It warned residents of Calico City that a blizzard will be arriving in the early morning and to expect delays.

"Hopefully that won't impact the mission, it would complicate things if we have to move about in blizzard conditions." Natsu said as he looked out the corner of his eye at the lounge room.

"I'll bring thick clothing so I don't freeze to death. We can't all be natural space heaters."

"If you can, get a thick white blanket to lay under, the snow will make it look natural. Cherry do we have something like that in stock?"

"Yes, Agent Salamander. There is a white thick woollen blanket in the second-floor linen cupboard."

"Thanks, Cherry, is there any snow tactical gear to fit me?" The man asked the A.I.

"Yes, Agent, there is a set in the basement."

"You head down and get things sorted, luv, I'll clean up here then be down in a sec." Bisca said as she collected up their empty bowls.

"Thanks for the food, it was delicious." The man replied with a smile as he took his leave and made his way down to the basement.

Natsu placed his hand on the scanner built into the wall and revealed the hidden armoury.

"Access Granted." The household A.I. announced as the walls opened up and a table rose from the floor. "Agent Salamander, you have an open communications request from Headquarters. Designation: Director Dreyar."

"Put it through, Cherry."

The table came to life with holographic projections, the aged director of the FTA glanced over to the window and noticed the accepted request. "Natsu, my boy, there you are. Where is Bisca?"

"She is just cleaning up after dinner and sent me on ahead."

"That is fine, I'll save the briefing for until she arrives. What are the conditions like up in Calico? I haven't had the chance to check the forecast."

"Declining, Sir. We had the News playing in the background while we had dinner and aside from the usual fluff they talk about, they mentioned that there will be a blizzard sometime in the early morning."

"Alright, I'll pull some strings and get some snowploughs clearing the streets early. You have snow tyres on your car right?"

"Complete with studs, I should be fine on the road providing there isn't a thick layer of snow."

The old man nodded, thoughtfully, as he typed away on his keyboard. "I'm sending through the mission map."

"Any good sniping positions?" Called out a voice from the stairway.

Bisca entered the basement with a bundled-up blanket in her arms. "Do you think this will be warm enough, Natsu?"

"Looks like it." The pinkette replied as he looked over at the woman, he brought out the railgun rifle and placed it on the table. "There is your rifle."

"Thanks, Luv."

"Bisca, as you can see on the map, I have marked out suitable positions with green crosses, you'll have waypoints on your HUD marking the locations." Makarov informed the green-haired sniper as he drew a circle around one of the crosses. "I recommend using this one as it will give you the best sightlines."

"Well, now that Bisca is here we can start the briefing." Natsu said as he laid out his Glocks on the table and walked over to get some more ammo for them.

"Let me get Mira on the line." The Director said as he turned away from the chat window.

A few moments later a second window opened, revealing the white-haired agent. She looked to be in her kitchen as she had an apron on and smudges of flour and batter on her cheeks and nose.

"Oh, hello everyone. Sorry about the mess, I'm in the middle of battering some fish with Lis for dinner."

"That's alright Mira. Hi Lis!" Natsu said as he brought over some mags for his pistols.

A woman with a short white bob cut leaned into view of the window. "Hi Natsu! Happy is with us, he is watching TV in the lounge room."

"What are you all having?" Bisca asked, she sat on the edge of the table and was familiarising herself with the sniper rifle that Natsu had lent her.

"Homemade fish and chips. Happy, Lis and I went fishing after I picked him up from school. We got a lot of good catches." Mira replied as she kept working on her dinner.

"Alright, while you all were catching up I have organised some ploughs to clean the streets between you and the target, you shouldn't have any trouble getting there, but getting out in the blizzard could prove a challenge." Makarov announced as he finally turned back to the camera.

"Well, I hope we are done before it happens then." Natsu replied as he got a set of snow camo clothing. "Speaking of which, do we have a time yet?"

"Approximately 0500 hours to 0600 hours. You'll need to investigate then warehouses in this area." The old man informed the group as he highlighted a set of buildings in yellow. "We have detected unusual activity among these buildings. For example, there have been regular patrols conducted around these warehouses."

A holographic screen rose from the table and played a snippet of footage from the CCTV camera, it showed various pairs of men and women armed with UZIs patrolling the area in sets of two.

A square appeared around the head of one of the men, expanding to show the face of the man. "We ran this image through our facial recognition software and came back with a hit. It is Kageyama, a member of the terror cell known as Eisenwald. And we had a few other hits too." Makarov said as the recording sped forward before stopping on another pair, the square appearing once again but this time highlighting both people. "You are looking at Rayule and Byard, both are members of Eisenwald."

"So, suffice to say, we know roughly where we need to look. Within their patrol routes." Natsu said as he glanced at the map. "Do we have their full loop, or will I need to put trackers on them?"

"We have a general idea of their route, enough to give you a search area, but we don't have their exact path so it would be a good idea to set a swarm of trackers in their known pathway and have them latch onto the patrols as they go by."

"Copy that, Sir."

"Any idea what they have in the warehouses?" Mira asked the old man. "Anything we should keep an eye out for?"

"The items in the warehouses vary from time to time depending on what company is currently utilising them, so we can't say for sure what exactly you will be looking for, but expect greater concentrations of terrorists the closer you get to their building."

"What about any documents?" Lis chimed in, faintly.

"She has a good point." The model agreed with a nod. "Has Levy checked for any files containing details on what the warehouses are being used for?"

"She did, some were able to be pulled but others must have been either saved on a portable hard drive or are only on paper. We couldn't find anything out of the ordinary."

"That is troubling…" The pinkette said as a frown grew on his face, he shook the thought from his head. "Ultimately, what the warehouses contain isn't our concern, as long as we can find the targets and recon the deal. That is all we really need to worry about."

"I agree with Natsu." Mira said, she walked away from the screen and the sound of an oven being opened came through the call.

"Likewise." Said the green-haired agent. "What else do we have, or will the rest be worked out on the field?"

"Just building plans, these warehouses are of a standardised design so they all share the same layout, this." Makarov said as another hologram formed, this time showing a detailed 3D layout of the warehouse. "Aside from that, we are all done. Be up by 0400 hours to ensure you are in position for the arms deal."

"Affirmative, Sir." All three of the agents replied in almost perfect unison.

"That will be all, have a good night." The old man said as he ended the briefing and closed his communication window.

"I think we ought to call it a night soon." Bisca said as she looked between the pinkette and the holographic chat window displaying Mira.

"Get your gear sorted and make sure you don't forget anything." Mira ordered as she reached for the interface. "Goodnight you two."

"You won't ever let me live that down, will you Mira?" Natsu asked with a sigh, he crosses his arms and shook his head in annoyance.

"Nope~." The beautiful agent cheered, playfully, as she gave him a wink.

"Off you go, you naughty girl, before I come back and punish you." The pinkette replied as he closed the call. "Let's finish up here and call it a night, Bisca."

"Sounds good, luv." The sniper said as she started collecting up her gear.

* * *

**4:27 am**

Natsu stood by the lounge room window, he was sipping away at a mug of coffee as he stared out at the black night sky. He could hear near-silent footsteps approaching him from behind as a voice greeted his ears.

"Roads clear?"

"Yeah, the truck went by not long ago and Levy has assured me that the roads are all clear of snow between here and the Samus District." Natsu replied as the green-haired agent came to a stop by his side. "I've already cleared the snow from the driveway and my car."

"I'm all set to roll if you are, have you got everything?"

"I triple checked after my shower, laid it all out on the bed. I have everything I could need, what about you?"

"Got your sniper, the ammo, my winter camo, and that white blanket. Plus a back-up weapon just in case. And of course, my Tac-com, I see you haven't forgotten yours."

"Cut the crap." Natsu growled as he placed a hand on his left forearm. "I already get enough of it from Mira, and Zeref."

"Well, you know what she is like, once she has something she won't let it go until something juicier comes up."

"That is true, if we are all set, let's get going."

"Sounds like a plan, luv." Bisca said as the two Agents slipped out of the house and locked it up behind them on their way to the car.

"You know the drill." Sal said as he got into the black muscle car.

"Codenames from here on, are we green to go Agent Demon?" Osprey asked as she slipped into the other side of the car, she popped her white boots up onto the dash lazily.

COMM: "I'm all set up on my end, linking with your feeds now and uploading the most up-to-date Intel we have."

The contacts that the two agents had, flashed to life before their eyes, across their HUDs were bars filling as each element was brought online.

COMM: "Alright, you are all good to go, just get into position and we can begin."

Sal pulled out onto the road and headed to the Samus District. "When we get closer, I'm shutting off the lights."

"Good idea, but make sure we don't end up in a wreck, will ya, luv."

"I'll try my best."

* * *

**Samus District, Calico City, 4:55 am**

The black car prowled the deathly silent streets, slipping from streetlight to streetlight while vanishing in the darkness between.

"How far to my position?" Osprey asked the other agent as she looked out into the darkness.

"A street over, I'll leave the car near you." Sal replied as he scanned the road using the night vision mode on his contacts.

"Are you going to walk there, luv?" The sniper asked as she turned her head to the man.

"It's for the best, even with the mufflers in the exhaust of the car, it still makes a noticeable noise. Just make sure you don't accidentally hit the switch that opens the valves."

"Bypass valves?"

"Yeah, better airflow."

"Well, enough car talk, anything I need to know about your rifle?" The greenette asked as she took one of the bullets from a pouch on her belt.

"There is no perceptible bullet drop and you don't have to worry about atmospheric influences on the bullet, that dial adjusts the power of the rail. Aside from that, just aim for their heads and pull the trigger to watch them explode like watermelons."

"Easy enough."

"It's a cakewalk." Sal said as he pulled over. "Take the wheel, I'll go clear the alleyway. Follow me in when I signal you."

**(From this point on, all FTA Agents will be speaking over their COMMs for silent communication.)**

The pinkette stepped out of the car and walked to the mouth of the alleyway. It was wide enough to fit his car in and open the doors almost completely. He raised the ambient temperature enough for the snow to melt as he slowly walked between the buildings.

"Alright, Osprey. Bring in the car and get set up on the tower, I'm heading in now."

"Copy that, Sal, I'll let you know when I am in position."

A low rumbled faintly echoed down the alley as the car pulled in behind the agent. Sal glanced over his shoulder at the greenette then shut off his magic aura and started to trudge through the snow to the warehouses.

The sniper watched as the man disappeared into the buildings, she brought the car to a stop and turned it off. 'Alright, Biz, showtime.'

"Osprey, I am highlighting the tower for you. Get up to a high position and scout around for it."

"Thanks, Demon, moving out now." Replied the agent as she glanced around the alleyway to find the best way up.

Agent Osprey crouched down, feeling the muscles in her legs fill with explosive power.

'Up we go.' She said to herself as she launched into the air, reaching out her arms to grab onto the warehouse guttering with a firm grip.

The greenette locked her hands onto the building and deftly pivoted her body up and over with the finesse of a gymnast.

"I see the tower, moving into firing position." Osprey said as a water tower loomed in the darkness not far from her, its outline highlighted in a yellow glow.

"Good. Sal, careful, you are about to run into a patrol." M informed the pinkette as her eyes skimmed over the CCTV feeds.

"Thanks for the heads up."

**0=0=0=0=0=0=0=0=0**

Agent Salamander pressed his back against the nearest wall as his hair turned snowy white, he pulled the snow camo half balaclava up over his mouth and nose to obscure him further as the sounds of a pair of slow footsteps reached his ears.

"Fuckin' cold, ain't it?"

"Fuckin' oath, freezin' my nuts off

"Why are we stuck out in this fuckin' cold?"

"I don't fuckin' know, boss' orders. We gotta keep an eye out for trouble and make sure nothin' goes down at the deal."

The patrol passed by the narrow alley housing the hidden agent, Sal reached into one of his pouches and took out a handful of spider drones. He placed them down by the corner of the building then quickly moved past the patrol route.

"Tracking Swarm in place, moving further into the target zone."

"Copy that, Sal."

The man slipped out of the shadows and broke out in a near-silent run, the only sound was the coarse rustling of snow being moved out of the way by the white combat boots.

His breath came out in short, sharp gusts from his nose as he moved from warehouse to warehouse. 'Looks like things are getting thicker, must mean I am getting closer.'

The low rumble of vehicles drifted over to his ears from a nearby street, moments later he was greeted by the soft drawl of Agent Osprey.

"Hey luv, I have eyes on a column of black SUVs, I can't quite make out the emblem on the sides but they seem to be heading left at the intersection in front of you."

"I have eyes on them too, Sal, but they are scrambling my CCTV feed so I can't get a clear picture. Wait. They are coming to a stop. Marking the warehouse now."

Sal saw a waypoint marker pop up on his HUD not far from his current location and silently thanked his handler, he noticed that there was another patrol about to cross the alley he was running down.

'Going to have to risk it, there is a high chance that the arms deal is about to go down…'

The agent primed his body for a quick burst of power as he sprinted towards the intersection of the alleyways, he became a blur as he flashed through the gap only metres ahead of the terrorist patrol.

"Huh, did you see something ahead of us?"

"Lady, all I see is snow, snow, and more snow. Why?"

"Dude, I'm serious, I swear I saw something run by, just up ahead of us."

"Are you sure it wasn't the snow shifting directions as it falls?"

"I… I don't even know anymore, this whole deal has me on edge, but if the boss wants it then who am I to say otherwise."

The woman stole a glance down the alleyway that she swore she saw movement but she was only met with snow for as far as she could see. "Guess it really was nothing."

It had only taken moments for Sal to reach his target thanks to the speed he had maintained, he quickly slowed back down to a more stealthy and quiet pace as he slinked around to the rear entrance of the warehouse.

"I've got two guards by the rear access, how should I proceed?" The agent asked as he peeked around the corner of the warehouse.

"Keep it quiet, put them to sleep or find another access point." M responded, switching one of her monitors to Sal's live feed. "A window or something."

The man pulled back from the corner and ran his eyes along the high wall of the building, looking for a window large enough to slip in through.

He spotted one after a moment of searching. It was high, near the roof, and the only way up is to climb up the downpipe.

Sal prayed to Kami as he gripped the metal pipe, he gave it a gentle tug to make sure it won't come away from the wall then gripped it with his legs as he started to work his way up the pipe.

'Slowly and quietly, gotta get in there quickly.'

The agent reached the window with ease and gently pulled it open, he slipped through the gap silently and closed the window behind him.

"Alright, I'm in the warehouse, moving to get a good vantage point over the meeting."

He moved along the catwalk, looking for a quiet and dark spot where he can drop down to the concrete floor.

Finding it near the doors to the warehouse, he slipped down off the walkway, silently. Landing down behind some boxes and pressing against them, staying out of sight of any patrols as he eavesdrops on the arms deal.

**0=0=0=0=0=0=0=0=0**

A finely dressed man stood among the group of gun-wielding men, his angular face focused upon the approaching armoured men that were carrying in reinforced boxes in their arms.

"Eh, Erigor, right?" Asked one of the soldiers as they walked to the white-haired man, a tablet in their hand.

"Yes, that is me. Are these the weapons that I ordered?"

"Yes, I am sure you'll find the contents to your liking." Replied the soldier as she handed the tablet over. "Inspect the manifest for yourself."

Erigor took the device from the woman and quickly skimmed through it, his head nodding slowly in acceptance. He turned to a group off to the side and quickly gestured them to the crates of weapons. "Start hooking them up to the vans."

"Hold that thought." The soldier ordered. "Money."

"Morty, take Rick and grab the cases from the office." The white-haired man called out over his shoulder, he turned his head back to the woman in full ballistic armour, looking into the mask covering her face. "I wouldn't worry about that, we always pay for quality."

"And we deliver quality goods, providing we are paid for our services, we go to great lengths to ensure all of our customers retain their anonymity."

"Speaking of quality." Erigor continued, he held his hand up to halt his two men with the briefcases. "How can I be sure that these are of the highest quality?"

"You're free to crack one open and take a whiff of it yourself." Replied a rough voice as a man with long black hair approached the group, he was flanked by a woman with blue wavy hair. They both were in full ballistic armour but have chosen to forgo wearing any headgear.

**0=0=0=0=0=0=0=0=0**

"Ah shit, you seeing what I am seeing, M?" The agent asked as he stared in disbelief at the black-haired man, he had metal studs and piercing all over his face, his identity was obvious to Sal.

"Yeah. It's Black Steel and Storm…"

"This is bad news, if Phantom are the ones dealing weapons to these terror cells then we have a big problem."

The hidden agent shifted slightly as he glanced at the crates of weapons, he was wondering what they contained. What had these mercenaries supplied the terrorists…?

"Considering those Mercs receive contracts from the government to do tasks that they don't want to do. Yeah, I know." Sal continued, he glanced over at the vans and read the logos on the side. "Those are pest control vans, troop transports?"

"Maybe something more sinister, stay hidden and keep your eyes on the deal. I'm sending your feed to the Director."

**0=0=0=0=0=0=0=0=0=0**

"I think I'll take your word for it, Black Steel. Unless I am mistaken, you don't go back on a deal." Erigor said as he appraised the man before him. He carefully studied the man's face for any sign of deceit with a frown adorning his face.

"You're damn right, now pay up, we go to great lengths to keep these sales away from prying eyes."

Erigor conceded, he signed the tablet and handed it back to the masked woman. "Rick, Morty, give them the cases. The rest of you start setting up the vans."

"Good." Black Steel said as he turned to the blunette next to him. "Run the cash through the counters, I want make sure we aren't being cheated."

"Yes Sir." Storm replied as she directed the two terrorists back out to the vans.

The black-haired man turned back to the head terrorist. "Let's talk about future purchases."

"Sounds like a good idea, come up to my office, our men can handle the rest of the transfer." Erigor replied as he turned, he started pointing to various people and sending them to set up the dozen vans.

Once all the terrorists had their orders, Erigor led Black Steel up to his office on the second floor of the warehouse, where they can oversee the transfer.

**0=0=0=0=0=0=0=0=0=0=0**

"Salamander, you have new orders: Find out what is being loaded onto those vans." Came the firm but kind voice of the Director.

"Copy that. I'll get into position and wait for an opening." The agent replied as he started moving from cover to cover as quickly as he can.

The man kept his movements quiet so he wouldn't be detected by anyone nearby or by Black Steel himself.

"What is the situation outside, Osprey?" He asked as he quickly glanced outside through the windows.

"Cold. Really fucking cold. Snow is picking up, I had to switch to Infrared Night Vision to cut through the snow and see the heat sigs. I've got about two dozen outside, maybe more."

"Hold fire, for now, if things go up shit creek then you can start to take down targets. Stick to terrorists though as we don't need Phantom getting too shitty with us." M ordered.

Sal slipped into cover behind one of the rest control vans that had already been loaded up with a container. He quietly opened the rear doors and slipped into it, closing the door behind him.

"I'm in. Now let's see what we have here…" The man switched to Night Vision and took in the contents of the van.

"The van seems to be outfitted with an industrial-grade fumigation machine, looks to be capable of high-pressure dispersion." Sal moved to the machine and knelt down beside the unmarked container.

"Checking the contents of the container now."

"Be careful, Sal, we still don't know what Phantom has sold these terrorists." M said, she watched his feed with worried eyes. There was movement to her left as a busty blond slipped into a chair next to her. "Celeste just turned up."

"Tell her I said hi." Sal replied as he started to unclamp the lid from the container.

"Concentrate Salamander, we are dealing with an unknown weapon." The Director warned him, sternly.

"Copy that." The man said softly as he lifted off the lid. "I see a large container, pipes leading into it from the sides of the reinforced case."

He wiped the condensation away from the inspection window.

"There is a clear liquid inside. Looks water-like."

"Proceed with caution, Agent." Interjected the Directed, a note of worry in his voice. The hairs on his neck had started to stand up in a clear sign that the liquid was something wicked and nefarious.

Agent Salamander ran his hands over the container, it felt cold to the touch, probably to keep the substance inside in liquid form. "There is a pressure gauge built into the side, looks to be reading slightly higher than atmospheric pressure."

He ran his fingers around the top of the box, finding a thin and almost imperceptible line. He focused on it and saw that there was a fine circle that was inlaid into the box. "I found a possible fill point. Not sure how to open it though."

"The container is hermetically sealed to keep the contents in." Sal said as he pressed down on the lid, he felt it give slightly and gave it an experimental turn.

With a hiss, the lid came free. It vented the pressure and vapour inside the container and set off a warning on the Agent's HUD.

**Warning.**

**Warning.**

**Neurotoxin Detected.**

**Warning.**

**Neurotoxin Designation SARIN Detected.**

"FUCK!"

**SARIN Exposure Detected.**

Sal quickly sealed the container again and closed the reinforced crate. "Guys, It's Fucking Sarin. They Have Provided The Terrorists With FUCKING SARIN!"

"Sal! Are you ok?" Agent Demon asked, worry evident in her voice. She was startled when the warning came up on her screen.

"I'm fine. What are my orders?"

"Salamander, we need to find out what they have planned, head to the office and find any Intell you can on their attack plans." The Director ordered, cautiously, he had to keep his emotions in check as he didn't want to cause panic among his agents.

* * *

**That is it for this chapter. Back into a tense mission for Agent Salamander, this time supported by Agent Osprey. It took me a bit to get out as between work and now the fires, my attention has been elsewhere, but I have been cooking up this mission for a while now in planning. Hope you all liked it, don't forget to follow and favourite if you haven't already, and please leave a review with what you thought of the chapter as feedback helps a lot. See you all next time.**


	13. Chapter 13

**(Continuing on from previously, all FTA personal will be using their COMMs for silent communication between themselves.)**

* * *

"Salamander, we need to find out what they have planned, head to the office and find any Intel you can on their attack plans."

"Copy that, I'll get closer and see if I can overhear their conversation." Sal replied to the old man.

"Negative. Get a vantage point and use your Laser Microphone instead." The Director ordered, sharply. "Once the room is clean then you can slip in. We don't want to risk open confrontation if we can avoid it."

"Got it, Sir." The man replied, he rubbed his eyes as they slowly started to water.

He put everything back in its place then slipped out of the back of the van. Looking around quickly, he got his bearings then slowly moved back up to the second floor, moving silently behind the terrorists.

Sal climbed up onto the rafters and shimmied his way along them. Sweat ran down his brow as he got into a good position for the Laser Mic.

"Reporting the first signs of Sarin exposure. I've got a runny nose and weeping eyes, I am starting to sweat." He informed his handler as he wrapped his legs around the beam and swung down, hanging upside down like a bat as he reached into a pouch.

"Don't push yourself, Mister." M replied, she had a very clear worry in her voice.

"I'll be fine." Sal said as he pulled the device from its place on his belt. The mic automatically connected to his Tac-com as he aimed it at one of the office windows.

**0=0=0=0=0=0=0=0=0=0=0=0**

"Alright, thanks for the report, Storm." Black Steel said as he took his finger away from his ear and turned his focus back to the white-haired man in front of him.

"Money checks out." The Merc said in his rough, gritty voice.

"Of course it would, we wouldn't try and double-cross you Phantoms, not since you have been so helpful in procuring resources."

"Better keep that in mind. Now, what do you plan on doing after this little shindig?"

"We'll pack up and head to another city once we are finished here, got a lot of places lined up for these vans over the next few days."

"What kind of gear do you think you will need?"

"Hmm." Erigor lent back in his chair and looked thoughtfully at a nearby corkboard. "Undoubtedly, there will be conflict after this strike. So I will need a weapons shipment, guns and ammo. They must be unmarked weapons too."

"All of our supplies are unmarked to prevent tracing them back to the source." Black Steel informed the man, idly. He moved over to the window and looked out at the warehouse floor. "What kind of guns are we talking about?"

"They need to be compact and concealable. And have enough punch to get through standard body armour."

"You'll be after PDWs then. We can provide tungsten tipped 5.7mm ammo to be used in the P90 platform. That will give you the concealability that you desire along with the armour-piercing of the tungsten ammo."

"Good, good. I'll send you the location we'll be at in a week's time, we can arrange shipment and payment from then," Erigor said, briskly, he took a bottle of whiskey from a small fridge under his desk along with two glasses.

He poured a portion of whiskey into both glasses and raised one. "To business."

"To business." Black Steel repeated as he took the offered glass, they clinked them together and downed the contents in a single gulp.

**0=0=0=0=0=0=0=0=0=0=0=0**

"Sir, I think that is all we are going to get." Sal said as he watched the two men drink to the deal.

"Alright, get inside that office, find any information you can." The Director replied, firmly.

"Copy that, Sir." The man replied, his chest started to feel tight, his breath getting short.

He put the Laser Mic back in its pouch and slowly shimmied back along the beam. His sweat was flowing out of him, almost like a river.

"Are you ok, Sal?" M asked, her voice full of worry as she watched a display that had all of his vitals and bio-feedback. "You are showing abnormal responses."

"Just the Sarin taking affect, M, don't worry about it." He grunted as he landed onto the catwalk. He wiped his watery eyes clear and moved along the elevated path.

'Push through it Sal, people are counting on you…' The agent said in his head as he heard the office door open.

"Men! How are the vans coming along?!" Erigor shouted as he walked out, leaning over the railing as he gazed upon the line of pest control vans.

"We are setting up the last one, Erigor." One of the people shouted back. "Just hooking it up now."

"Storm, how're things looking outside?" Black Steel asked, his finger to his ear.

The radio on his chest beeped and played Storm's response. "Snow is getting heavier, we might have an hour before it gets too thick."

"We have enough time, make preparations to bug out of here."

"Copy that. Storm out."

"You better get these vans on the road and in position, ASAP." Black Steel said as he looked to the white-haired man next to him. "Mother Nature waits for no man."

"I hear that. Once that last van is ready I'll have my people drive them to their targets."

"Good, I'll take my leave then. See you next time, Erigor." The Merc said as he walked past the terrorist and made his way back to his team.

Salamander stepped around the corner and slinked along the wall, moving silently past the terrorist leader and slipping into the office, unseen.

"I'm in the office." He said as he quickly glanced around. He spotted the corkboard and made his way to it. "Looks like they are planning on hitting the city of Silene next."

"Can you find any more information? Something about their current plans for now, then we can focus on their next target." M asked, looking over his visual feed.

The man quickly skimmed the board, his fingers landed upon a map. "I've got a map with markings, Calico, looks like possible targets. Thirty circled, eighteen have been crossed out, leaves twelve targets."

"They would be our locations. I'm gathering strike teams to eliminate these vans." The Director said, quickly.

A shout from outside the office caught Sal's attention. "Erigor! The final van is done! We're ready to leave!"

"Director, I don't think we'll have time to intercept the vans or stop the attack." Said Sal, he wiped his eyes once more and swallowed the build-up of spit in his mouth. "By the time the teams reach Calico, these vans will be in position and the blizzard will be in full force."

"Osprey, you need to take out the drivers." M ordered, quickly thinking up alternate plans.

"Negative." Sal interjected immediately. "That rifle will punch through the drivers and hit the canisters of Sarin in the back. Even on the lowest setting, it will over-penetrate."

"Shit. What about the engines?"

"Could work, I can easily make the shot but if the engine grenades itself from the force, it could hit the piping and release the chemical weapon." Osprey chimes in, her voice sounding dull from the shit show of a situation they are getting stuck in.

"Salamander. Do you have any info on their route?" The Director asked, hurriedly.

The agent quickly flicked through notes and other maps, the grating sound of the large warehouse doors sliding open entered his ears, causing him to curse softly aloud.

"Get these vans on the road, remember your destinations, hunker down and prepare for the operation, remember the plan!" The voice of Erigor drifted up from the warehouse floor.

'Time is running out…' The agent thought to himself, working himself harder to find a route.

The sound of multiple engines starting below him caused him to let out a sigh of defeat. "Sir. There is nothing here on their routes, they would most like be in the vans. And they could be different for each on to avoid suspicious."

"Put trackers on them ASAP. Quickly, before they leave." The old man ordered, firmly.

"Copy that." Sal replied, he stomach starting to churn from the toxin in his system, it almost made him retch. 'Tough it out, Sal, you have a mission to complete…'

He reached into his pocket and took out a dozen tracker drones as he moved to the door, he knew his body would be able to handle exposure better than a normal person, but he still knew he needed treatment soon.

With a sweep of his arm, he threw the drones to the vans and watched them latch on as the vehicles started to leave the warehouse.

"Bad news." Osprey said. "Those vans are heading away from me, I don't have a clear shot on the engines. Please advise."

…

"Sir?" Sal asked as he ducked back into the office.

The two agents were met with the frustrated voice of their Director. "Hold fire, we don't want to risk rupturing the containers. Those trackers are transmitting so we'll send the info to the local law enforcement so they can intercept the vans, we can only hope they can stop them before they reach their targets. Start pulling out of there."

"Copy that, Sir. Osprey, cover me while I get out of this place." Sal said as he walked back over to the desk. He scanned all of the intel he can find regarding the next attack. "Sir, if I come under fire, what are my directives?"

"Lethal force is authorised, but if you can slip out unnoticed then that benefits everyone as the vans won't be on guard."

"Affirmative."

Sal was starting to feel fairly ill thanks to the Sarin in his system, he bent over and steadied himself on the desk, his stomach was churning and the tightness in his chest was leaving him breathing heavily. 'Fuck… I need to get out of here.'

The man looked up at his reflection in the window, he was looking pale and had started to bleed colour back into his hair due to losing control of the flow of his magic.

Sal pulled the cloth from over his mouth and nose and coughed into his hand. 'Damn…'

The once-again pink-haired agent pulled himself together and headed for the door, hoping the clamour of the vans would drown out any possible noise he made. He held a hand to his chest as he moved slowly along the catwalk.

**_CRACK, Ting._**

A bullet ricocheted off of the steel support beam next to his head, the man groaned and looked to the shooter.

"Good job, Storm." Black Steel called out. He took a good look at the man upon the elevated walkway. He watched the white drain out to pink completely.

"Agent Salamander." The Merc spat out, his face contorting into a snarl.

"Hello there, Captain Black Steel." Sal said aloud as he leant on the railing. "Funny seeing you here."

"Who the fuck is this!" Erigor shouted, he pointed at the agent. "Shoot him!"

"Bad Fucking Idea." Black Steel warned the man, knowing full well what the agent can do. He turned to Storm. "Fall back, we are done here."

"What the fuck!? It is just one guy. SHOOT HIM!" The white-haired terrorist leader shouted at the Phantoms.

"Wasn't on the order, Erigor, kill him yourself." Black Steel said as he turned to his soldiers. "Or die trying."

Erigor pulled out his .357 Magnum and pointed the snub barrel at the Merc. "What has got you so scared about one man?!"

"I'm not scared, but you should be since one of your men is already dead." The pierced man said as he pointed behind the terrorist leader.

"What?!"

_Thud_

The man spun around and saw that the closest terrorist to him was laying on the floor, her throat slit with brutal precision. "What The Fuck?!"

"You know. You should really listen to Captain Black Steel over there." Sal told the white-haired man, his tone stoic as he slowly walked out from behind his back. "He and I have bumped into each other before, and even had to work alongside each other. So he knows what I am capable of."

Erigor slowly looked between the railing where the man once was and back to the agent next to him, panic slowly setting on his face. "How… Who…?"

"I'm Salamander. Agent Salamander. I work for the FTA. That alone should tell you exactly who and what you are dealing with."

"F… T… A…? Ah FUCK!"

"Boss, what should we do?" Asked one of the terrorists, his eyes on the lifeless body surrounded by a pool of her own blood.

"Kill The FUCKER!" Shouted Erigor as he pointed to the agent next to him… Only, the agent was no longer there. "Where the fuck is he now?!"

The terrorists slowly walked around the warehouse, searching for the agent who had seemingly vanished into thin air.

Black Steel turned to his troops. "Go and load up. Storm and I will be out soon."

"Yes Sir." The Mercs replied, snapping off a quick salute before leaving the warehouse.

"Captain?" Storm asked curiously.

"Watch carefully Juvia… You'll see why, even though I have beef with Salamander, I still respect him and the agency he works for." He told her, quietly. "Above."

The blunette turned her eyes to the roof, she noticed the pinkette standing up on one of the ceiling beams and was eying his targets below him.

Sal dropped from the ceiling, quickly and quietly. He landed behind one of the terrorists and placed his hands on their head, one over the mouth and the other behind their head.

_SNAP_

The sound echoed throughout the silent warehouse as the body slumped to the floor, the terrorists all snapped around to their fallen comrade but the agent was already at his next target.

The pinkette used his momentum to land a bone-shattering kick to his target's head, causing it to explode in a shower of gore.

Agent Salamander drew his twin Glock 20s, both with custom-made FTA Suppressors, his watery eyes making it hard to aim properly. 'Fuck this.'

With two quick shots from the twin 10mm pistols, two of the terrorists fell to the floor. The terrorists overcame their shock and opened fire on the lone man.

Erigor watched in horror as the man ran through the hail of bullets, miraculously not getting hit by any. The agent quickly took out the terrorists, one by one, each person's life ending with rapid double taps at close range.

As a woman fell dead at the hands of the deadly agent, the body was intercepted by a heavy kick to the abdomen. Sal sent the body flying at two men who were standing practically shoulder to shoulder.

The man moved like a blur, closing the distance between the hostiles in a split second.

_Click-Click Click-Click_, came the sound of his pistols as they dry fired, they had run out of ammo.

Agent Salamander came to a stop behind the two men, a Bowie Knife gripped firmly in each hand. Neither having a speck of blood on them.

The man put the Bowies away and took his pistols back out to reload them as the heads fell cleanly from the men behind him.

"Oh my…" Storm muttered, her eyes wide, she had never seen anyone so lethal yet so calm and in control. "Ju… Juvia doesn't understand, how can he do that?"

The white-haired man slowly backed away from the carnage, he had heard rumours about the FTA and their Agents, but he had never believed them, even when other cells had reported on conflicts where they had come across an agent.

The agent slowly turned his eyes onto the frightened terrorist leader, the last remaining living terrorist in the warehouse. He slowly started walking to the man, placing one of his suppressed Glocks back into its holster.

"We don't really know, but when a new Agent turns up on our radar, they always seem to have a different special ability. Some are noticeable, Agent Knight has Psionic Powers for example, and she is very skilled at using them." Black Steel replied to his subordinate, he pointed at the agent as he slowly made his way to Erigor. "That man though, we don't know what his ability is, but he can seemingly predict all attacks. It is very hard to land a hit on him."

Erigor turned away from the menacing man and started to run for the exit, only to be met with a soft click followed quickly by a subsonic 10mm bullet as it tore through his left knee, silently. Thanks to the modifications on the suppressors done by the Archivist.

"Gaah Fuck!" The white-haired man shouted in pain as he fell to the floor, he started dragging himself along the floor to try and leave, blood trailing behind him from the gory remains of his knee.

Sal silently walked up to the side of the man and placed a boot squarely on his back, he pushed Erigor into the ground and prevented him from dragging himself any further away.

Erigor struggled to breathe with the heavy boot pressing him into the concrete. He turned his head, slowly, to look back at the pinkette, only to stare down the barrel of his Glock. "Wait!"

_click_

The soft sound of the pistol firing echoed in the warehouse, singing the elegy for Erigor's last moments.

The casing clattered to the ground and rolled a few feet away from the body.

Sal lowered the pistol to his side as he turned to the last two Mercs in the building. "Tell me, why the fuck did you supply them with Sarin!"

Black Steel held his hands up. "A job is a job. We got paid, what they do with it is none of our concern."

"I should shoot you. Not only for supplying terrorists, but for also torturing and murdering one of my friends!" Sal shouted, his anger flaring and causing his stomach to flip, he staggered away from the bodies and bent over as he vomited up bile onto the concrete. "Fucking Sarin."

"I didn't torture Ignatius, that was the Boss. We were just tasked with bringing him in." Black Steel said, he let out a soft sigh as he reached into one of his pouches and walked to the pinkette who was showing obvious symptoms of Sarin poisoning. "I had to leave the room. I've never seen the Boss so… Enthusiastic about interrogating someone. Gotta give your man props though, not once did he budge."

Sal righted himself and wiped the remnants from his mouth with his sleeve. He watched the man cautiously. "We are trained to resist all forms of interrogation, and also trained to use all forms of interrogation too. You know, Ignatius had a son, I had to break the news to the poor kid."

Storm looked down at her feet, her eyes brimming with tears at the news. "Juvia wants to know, how old is the boy? What is his name?"

"Romeo, Romeo is his name. The kid is a teenager, he looked up to his dad, wanted to be just like him. He idolised me, every time I was training, be it fighting or shooting, he used to ask if he could join in." Sal informed them, Black Steel came to a stop before him and took out an Autoinjector.

"This will counteract the Sarin, it will be gone from your system in about half an hour or so. Take it." He said as he offered the syringe to the agent. "We had them on hand just in case some idiot got a face full of vapour during handling and transit."

"Why are you giving this to me?" Sal asked, he was hesitant to take the offer of help from the man he hated for everything he had caused, but here he was standing before the agent with a genuine, albeit faint, look of empathy.

"Look. You and I butt heads from time to time when we run into each other, but I respect you Salamander. I didn't intend for that Agent to die, I was just doing my job, just like I am with these deliveries. Boss' orders."

Storm quietly walked over to the two men, she gently took the medical device from her superior and offered it to the agent herself. "Juvia has no quarrels with you Agent Salamander. Let her help you."

"Quirky aren't you?" Sal said, smiling at her use of third-person speech, they probably had it on record somewhere but he found that she somehow put him at ease, somewhat. The agent, however, still remained cautious of the two Phantoms. "Ok, but how do I know this isn't some kind of trick?"

A small tentacle of water formed on the tip of Storm's finger as she removed the protective cap from the tip of the device, it slipped down the hypodermic needle and extracted a minuscule amount of the contents from the syringe. "Tac-com please."

The agent lifted his arm and allowed the Merc to deposit the liquid into the receptacle. It only took a moment for the analysis to complete, aside from the pure water produced by the woman, the reading came back as a mixture of Atropine and Pralidoxime Chloride, the medicine used in treating exposure to organophosphates like Sarin.

Sal's eyes rose from the arm-mounted computer, rising up to meet the deep, compassionate, dark blue eyes of the female mercenary. She moved the injector closer to the man, reaffirming her offer to aid him.

He slowly took the Autoinjector from her, he looked at it cautiously one more time but gave in, he jammed it into his thigh and hit the button. "…Thanks, might have saved my life, but I still don't trust Phantom."

The agent handed the device back to the blunette, he looked between the two Mercs as a question popped into his mind. "Is it true, that the head of Phantom is corrupt? Everything we have seen has pointed out that he is working both sides."

Storm nodded, vigorously, her eyes going as cold as arctic water. "People inside the company have been starting to question his motives, his sanity. He has been sending us on odd jobs for a little over a year now."

"She is right." Black Steel said, gruffly. "The Boss seems to be going off the deep end, who knows what he would do next… Some people in the company that believe he is correct, and is doing the right thing, and others are against him."

"And what about you two?" Sal asked, curiously.

"We are against him, so is everyone I am in charge of, I handpicked all of them." Black Steel replied, Storm nodding along in agreement.

"Interesting…" The agent said, he looked between both of them and silently contacted his handler. "You hearing all this?"

"Yes, the Director is too. See if you can get them to come to HQ, He wants to talk to them." M replied, she sipped a tea to calm her nerves.

The man sighed and turned his full attention back to the two Phantoms in front of him. "Looks like my Director wants a word with you two about your boss. When you two have some downtime, head over to Magnolia and drop by the FTA. Just ask for me at Reception, I'll let them know we are expecting you."

"And if we don't want to go?" Black Steel asked, idly, as he rolled his eyes.

"We aren't going to drag you in, kicking and screaming if that is what you are wondering." Sal said as he waved his hand in a circle, idly. He walked past them and headed for the rear entrance, he felt his airways slowly open back up, he stepped outside and took a deep breath of the cold winter air. Looking back over his shoulder one last time at the two Mercs, he left them with one final thing. "Keep the offer in mind, we may be able to help with your situation."

"Let's go, Storm, we have to give our report."

"What will we say, Sir?" The blunette asked as they made their way to the waiting SUVs.

"Handover was a success and the clients paid us in full. Just how it happened."

"Then we left once the deal was done?"

"Exactly."

* * *

**(Sub-vocal communication will once again be denoted by COMMS: "XXX")**

* * *

**Five Minutes Later**

Agent Osprey jumped down from the rooftop near the car. She landed next to Sal but almost lost her footing. "We need to head to the Safe House, ASAP, that blizzard is starting to roll in and I don't plan on getting caught in it."

"Wouldn't want you to freeze to death." The pinkette replied, quickly. "You alright?"

"Thought my hands were going to freeze to the rifle at one point, but aside from that, I am fine." The green-haired sniper said, she turned her eyes to the white sky. "What about you, sounded like you took a face full of Sarin?"

"I did, fucked me about too. But what is more surprising is that I was given an autoinjector to counteract the toxin by Storm and Black Steel." Sal hurried to the car and unlocked it. "Get in."

Osprey rushed into the passenger side of the black muscle car. She looked over at the man as he started the vehicle. "I don't know how you trusted them…"

"I don't, but they seemed like they were being honest with me. And if there is some kind of schism going on in Phantom then it would be good to have people on the inside." The pinkette replied, he started the car and pulled back out of the alleyway.

"Good to see that they aren't all a bunch of yes men." The greenette mused aloud to herself.

…

A couple of minutes had passed when Osprey finally noticed that they hadn't left the street yet, they were sitting at the intersection at the end of the road. She turned her head to look at the man.

Agent Salamander was gripping the steering wheel and gear stick, firmly. His face had remained stoic but internally he was seething with anger. "…Fuck It All!"

Osprey wasn't surprised by his sudden outburst, she placed her hand on his shoulder. "The vans?"

"Yes." He growled, his visage slowly contorting into a snarl, his inhuman fangs glinting in the lights of the car.

"Want to talk about it?"

The man slammed his fist down onto his thigh in frustration. "We couldn't stop those vans, now they are on their way to their targets, we have the trackers in place and can intercept them much faster and more effectively than the cops."

"What can we do? The blizzard is coming in. It would affect the police's response times."

"GGRRAAAHH!" Sal pushed his foot to the floor and wrenched the steering wheel around, his mind made up. "We're intercepting them! I don't give a fuck!"

* * *

**That is it for this chapter, I hope you have enjoyed it, feel free to follow/favourite and leave a review if you have any feedback on the chapter. I'll see you all back here for the next chapter, byeeee.**


	14. Chapter 14

The black muscle car ripped down the snowy roads, straining for traction as Agent Salamander chased down the closest van.

"You need to be more careful!" Osprey criticized her fellow agent as they nearly spun out around a corner.

"Do you want to be the one driving in this shit?" The pinkette argued, he gestured angrily at the heavy snow. "Even with snow tyres on, this car is a monster."

"No, Luv, I may have the eyes of a hawk but I can't compare to you when it comes to this."

Sal fumed silently, he could still feel the Sarin damaging his body. His nose was slowly starting to run once more.

The sniper glanced at the man beside her, noticing his returning symptoms. "Is it coming back?"

"Unfortunately, yeah, it is. Can you check the glovebox, there is a Medikit in there."

"You're after another Autoinjector, right?"

"Just get one ready. If my symptoms get too bad then I'll get you to jam it into my leg."

Osprey opened the glove box and started to rummage in the bag.

"Corner." Announced Sal, giving the woman a few seconds of warning to brace herself before he flung the modified Hemi Cuda around the bend.

"Thanks for the heads-up." She replied while straightening back up, she held the device at the ready in her hands.

COMM: "What the hell are you doing Agent Salamander?!" Shouted the Director.

The pinkette grumbled as he yanked the earpieces out from his ears, he glanced at the woman next to him. "You talk to him, I need to focus."

COMM: "Sir, we are pursuing the vans."

COMM: "I can see that. Why?"

COMM: "It was Agent Salamander's call, Sir."

COMM: "Why does that not surprise me? Fine, I'll leave them to you but be aware that the Calico Police Department will still be receiving live tracking data."

COMM: "Copy that, Sir."

Agent Osprey let out a soft sigh, alerting the pinkette. "Sounds like you are done talking, Osprey?"

"Yeah, Luv, police will still be gunning for the vans, but we have the authorisation to continue."

"Speaking of which." Sal nodded up the road from them. "First target is at this intersection."

"It is best that we hit them as quick as possible. Don't stop."

"I wasn't planning on it." The pinkette grinned as the pest control van came into sight quickly.

The van was outlined on their HUDs, marking it as one of their targets.

"I'm going to take it on my side."

"You sure you can handle that?" Osprey glanced at the man as he hit the button to wind down the driver-side window.

"I'm sure." Sal said, his voice full of firm confidence in his ability.

The agent swerved into oncoming traffic, charging up the road as he raced towards the van.

He juggled the controls; shifting gears, yanking the handbrake, and wrenching the steering wheel around.

The monstrous car kicked out its rear end as it came alongside the van, straining for grip as the engine roared furiously.

"Come on, baby! Dance for me!"

The world seemingly slowed for the pink-haired agent as the car hooked around in front of the van.

Facial recognition flashed on his HUD, quickly registering the man driving the van as a member of Eisenwald.

Sal pulled his G20 free of its holster, his eyes not once leaving his target.

The sound of the roaring engine drowned out the two swift, soft clicks from the suppressed Glock.

Two 10mm rounds quickly pierced the windshield of the van, one after the other.

They collided with the driver with a heavy thud, one punching through the man's heart and the other through his head.

With another roar of power, the car lurched forward. The wheels caught traction and guided the car out of the intersection.

"Surprise motherfucker..." Sal placed the pistol back into its holster and wound the window back up. "That's one down. Let's take down the next one."

Osprey tapped her Tac-com, bringing up a holographic map. "Next van is five blocks ahead then hard left. They will be coming towards us."

"Keep an eye on it. Is that map synced with the police transponders?"

The greenette tapped at the device, humming a soft tune as she worked. "There we go, no police in the area just yet."

Sal grumbled and cursed under his breath at the seemingly inept police force. He guided the car through the traffic at high speeds.

Red and blue flashing icons blinked to life on the borders of Osprey's map. They were moving to their next target. "Sal, we have Five-Oh moving on the target."

The car dipped down as Sal slammed his boot on the anchors, swinging the car around the corner. "Alright."

The sound of sirens could faintly be heard over the roaring of the engine as the car powered down the road.

"Should we leave this one?" Sal glanced over at the woman next to him and saw the flashing dots start to swarm the target. "Looks like the cops are all over it."

"Slow down and cruise past, we don't draw unwanted attention. We'll see what the situation is and decide from there."

The man took his foot off the accelerator and hit the toggle switch to quieten the exhaust, he shifted down a few gears to force the car to slow down faster.

"What's your take on this?" Sal glanced at his partner.

They slowly drove past the police, watching as the officers surrounded the van and trained their compact rifles and shotguns at the driver.

"They have this one covered, let's move onto the next one. Demon is trying to talk to you."

"Give me a moment." The pinkette turned down an alleyway to get onto a path to the next van. He placed his earpieces back in once he was back on track.

COMM: "Sal here."

COMM: "You Fucking Asshole!" The woman sighed softly now that she had gotten that out of her system. "I have been monitoring the CCTV and I saw one of the vans pull into an underground car park, it's under a skyscraper. The police aren't anywhere near it."

COMM: "You don't mince words, do you? Alright, mark the priority target on my HUD for me, we'll head to that one ASAP."

Chevrons appeared on the agent's display, guiding him to the next location. "Osprey, better hold on."

* * *

Sirens were blaring all around them as Salamander pushed the car to the limits, flying up the hill.

"Dive down the upcoming left, Luv, we have a van running from the cops. If we move fast enough then we should be able to intercept it."

"Gotcha."

Sal raced down the road, following Osprey's directions as they moved to cut off the van. The sound of sirens grew louder and more distorted.

"Damn, how many cops are chasing this van?"

"About a dozen, Luv. I'll take this one." The greenette pulled out her OTs-33 Pernach and cocked it, she set the pistol to full auto and wound down the window.

"Better be quick. I'll be hooking around it and shooting down the way it came."

Osprey turned in the seat, she braced herself as she prepared to take the shot.

"Intersection is coming up in Three… Two… One… GO!"

Osprey fired off a loud burst of bullets from the pistol in the small window of time she had before Sal wenched the car around and shot past the cops.

"I think I got them." She murmured as she looked through the rear window. The van careened off the road and crashed into a building.

"Looks like you did something, if they aren't dead then they'd be on the path."

"Good, the priority target should only be a few blocks away."

COMM: "Hey, M, can you check the map for any other vans that have reached their destination but have no cops around them."

COMM: "Let me get back to you with that. Just focus on the current target."

"Sal..., don't look now but we have police chasing us."

"OH, FOR FUCK'S SAKE!" He glanced up into the mirror and spotted four sets of lights. "Four interceptors. Fucking morons."

They rapidly approached the entrance to the underground parking lot. The cops hot on their tail the whole way.

Salamander yanked on the handbrake as he whipped out the tail of the car, flinging it down the ramp into the car park at the very last moment that he could safely do.

He flicked his arm back and shot the catch on the doors, making them come crashing down and preventing the police from following them in.

"That should get them off our back for now."

They cruised into a spot hidden from direct view of the entrance.

"I'll leave it running, we need to get to his van."

Both agents raced out of the car and sprinted for the target lit up on their HUDs. It was by a wall near the elevators of the building.

COMM: "What do you think he is up to?" Sal asked as they moved closer, their pistols drawn and ready to fire.

COMM: "Time to find out, Luv."

They slowed down and pressed against the van. Osprey checked the cabin and turned to the pinkette, shaking her head.

Agent Salamander slipped around to the back of the van, grasping the handle softly as he trains his Glock on the door.

He opened it, slowly and silently, spotting the chemical weapon container instantly.

There were hoses leading out of a side door, they came from the commercial fogging machine.

Sal moved around the back of the van just as Osprey came around the front.

COMM: "They have the fumigator running into this service room."

COMM: "I don't like the look of this, I think that is the ventilation room." Agent Demon informed the duo.

COMM: "Fuck! They are planning on gassing people using the ventilation systems."

The pinkette moved into the room quickly, sweeping his pistol around the room silently.

He spotted the terrorist hooking the pipes up to the intakes of the vents.

Osprey watched as Sal silently strolled up to the man's back and raised his gun up to the back of the man's head.

_click_

The pinkette holstered his pistol as he turned back to the door, the dead body sprawled out on the vents behind him. "Osprey, disconnect the hoses from the van."

"On it."

COMM: "M, can you forward a message to the Calico Cops: They're hooking up the chemical weapons to building ventilation systems using the fumigation machines in the vans."

The man didn't wait for an answer as he followed the sniper out of the room. He could hear a ratcheting sound, it drew his attention to the doors to the car park.

"They're almost inside." He glanced over at Osprey. "We may have to deal with the cops soon."

The woman ripped the hoses out of the machine then unloaded a burst from her pistol into the fumigator. "That'll prevent anyone from accidentally gassing themselves. Let's go, Luv."

Sal groaned and doubled over, using the van as support. "Damn… I think I need another shot, symptoms are coming back, slowly."

"You look a little pale…"

"Nauseous, it'll pass in a sec."

Shouting could be heard, faintly, it was coming from the entrance. The police had finally gained access to the parking lot.

"Looks like we don't have time for it to pass. Let's get back to the car, Osprey."

"On it."

The two agents sprinted back to their ride, trying to stay out of sight but keeping the momentum up at the same time.

They hurried into their awaiting car and watched as the police fanned out into the underground lot.

COMM: "The police force have been notified, Sal. But I have bad news."

COMM: "What have you got for us, M?"

COMM: "Two things. We have received reports of successful attacks on the nearby structures, the cops were too late in responding to the more critical threats."

COMM: "Fucking Hell… How many vans reached their targets?"

COMM: "Six of them, including the one you just stopped. Unfortunately, the other five managed to deliver their payload."

"GRRAAAHH!" Sal punched the dash in anger, it caved in a little but it was nothing that couldn't be fixed easily.

COMM: "Agent Demon, what was the second piece of news?" Osprey grabbed the Autoinjector and jabbed it into Sal's thigh.

"Oi! Warn me next time!"

COMM: "Calm your temper, Sal. The second piece of news is that the blizzard will be there in less than five minutes. You two should hurry up and get to shelter."

The pinkette sighed, he shook his head to clear his mind. They had saved as many people as they could, it was better than what could have happened.

COMM: "Alright. I'll take us back to the Safe House."

Salamander put the car in gear and quickly took off up the ramp, launching out to the road, startling the police force surrounding the entrance as they soared over their heads.

"They're going to chase us again, Luv."

"I know."

The man shot passed the police cars gathered around the entrance, the engine roaring menacingly as he took off down the road.

A few moments later, the drone of sirens pierced through the air. Sal glanced at the woman next to him. "Took them longer than I was expecting."

Osprey looked over her shoulder and spotted three off the four interceptors that were chasing them before. "Looks like they left one behind."

"Probably to check the van."

"You need to shake them, Luv."

"The snowfall is getting thicker, we'll vanish soon." Sal reached over and flicked a switch, killing all external lights, he flicked another to quieten the exhaust.

The agents didn't have to wait long for visibility to drop enough that the police were forced to break off their pursuit.

Sal turned off the road they were on and headed for the FTA Safe House. "Time to get back."

"Once we get there I want you to use the Auto-Doc. Let me handle the debrief." Osprey gave the man a stern glance, her eyes leaving no room for argument.

"Won't hear any complaints from me, I want to get this toxin out of me as soon as possible."

* * *

Natsu parked the car in the garage, next to Bisca's BMW convertible. "Oh, you got the M8 back from Ashlyn."

"Yeah, it was a few days before I came here for my mission. She had to put a new engine in it. Don't ask why." The woman slipped out of the car gracefully and headed for the door. "I'll leave your rifle on the table in the basement."

"Thanks." The pinkette followed her down to the basement and placed what gear he had taken back onto the walls.

"Hey Cherry, Luv, can you put me through to Agent Demon and the Director."

"Right away, Agent Osprey."

Natsu grabbed his railgun sniper and left the basement as the holographic windows extended out of the table.

"Good work out there, both of you." Makarov's voice followed him up the stairs. The old man sounded proud of the work they had done today.

The man ran a hand up his face, he was feeling exhausted and was ready for a long nap. He muttered to himself as he walked to the study. "Cherry, activate the Auto-Doc, I need neurotoxins flushed out of my system."

"Of course, Agent Salamander. Please proceed to the study."

"Already on the way…" He ran a hand through his hair tiredly as he entered the room. Spotting the medical bed sitting in the middle of the room, waiting for him.

"Please remove your clothes and lay down on the bed."

"Yeah yeah, I'm getting there." The man muttered to himself as he started to remove his clothing. "How long is this blizzard forecasted to stick around?"

"Approximately eight hours, Agent Salamander."

"Pity Mr. Freeze isn't here, I bet he would love the snow." He sighed and laid down on the medical bed. "Cherry, let me fall asleep before you begin flushing my system."

"Can do, Agent Salamander."

Cherry waited until her sensors detected that the man had fallen into a deep sleep before activating the Auto-Doc.

Robotic arms extended from the medical machine and rapidly cycled through attachments and functions until it selected the required instruments.

Hypodermic needles pierced the man's skin and started to inject a solution to completely neutralise the toxin and repair any damage caused by it.

* * *

**Calico Safe House, 2:30pm**

Natsu awoke from his slumber with a groan, he slowly sat up and rubbed the sleep from his eyes as movement from the doorway caught his attention.

"You're awake, finally. How are you feeling, Luv?"

"Like shit, but I'll live."

"What went down in that warehouse?" Bisca walked over to the computer desk and picked up the pinkette's clothes, twin G20s and the G29. "Huh, I thought you carried a Glock 20 and a 29, not two G20s."

"After Macao died I decided to start working on my duel wielding again, found that the balance was off with the two different sized ten mils so I kept the 29 as a backup and added a second 20."

"That 29, is that the same one Macao gave you?" The woman walked over to the naked man and placed his clothes down next to him.

"Not that one, though I carry it in his memory. The actual one is in my home." He slid off onto his feet and started putting on his clothes. "As for what went down in the warehouse, it was all going smoothly until I got spotted by Storm. She alerted Black Steel with a shot that just missed me, would have been a warning shot."

"And then?"

"I improvised. Do you know if they have wiped the police records of my car?"

"Yeah, Levy called not long ago, she said it was safe to drive back."

"Good, I'm clean of the toxin so I just want to go home and relax." Natsu finished putting on his clothes and holstering his pistols. "Plus I need to check up on how Lucy is going."

Bisca smiled, happy that he was actually taking his role in training Lucy seriously. "Want something to eat or are you planning on heading out right away?"

"I think I'll head out now, I've got everything stored away in my requip dimension so I won't have to hang around."

"Well, I'll see you back at HQ." She gave the man a friendly wave goodbye as she left the room.

"Thanks for your help with this mission, Bisca, might not have turned out exactly how we wanted it to but in the end, the job is done." Natsu followed her out, he grabbed a can of lemonade from the fridge. "Alright, be seeing you, Biz."

"See you, Luv." She glanced back at him with a smile before heading into the lounge room.

* * *

**Magnolia, 9:45am**

Natsu walked through the halls of the FTA HQ, he was heading to meet up with Lucy in his office while he was on the phone with Zeref.

"Natsu, what do you think of my idea?" The somewhat obnoxious clicking of a pen could be heard alongside Zeref's inquiry.

"Let me get this straight." Natsu nodded his head to a group of Operator Privates that stood at attention and snapped off a salute to the Agent.

"Ease up guys, I don't bite." He chuckled as he walked past, turning his attention back to the phone call. "Anyway, you're telling me that you want to have a little wargame?"

"Yeah, I'll set up one of the large-scale training rooms for something like a Capture-the-Flag style operation. Pairing up Lucy with a few other agents and having them work together to infiltrate a location and retrieve some kind of McGuffin."

"What kind of resistance will they be facing?" The pinkette entered his office and sat at his desk. He reached into a draw by his knee and pull a notepad and a pen free from the clutter.

"I'm thinking a hierarchal structure of hostiles, maybe somewhere around eight elites each with maybe six or seven goons with one leader."

Natsu started writing down notes on his notepad as the door opened. "Will you be handpicking the hostile force?"

The beautiful white-haired handler of Natsu's hummed a soft tune as she closed the door behind her, she glanced at the agent at his desk with a happy smile. "Hiya Hotstuff."

The pinkette's lips curled into a smile as he winked at Mira and watched her flick on the TV onto the news.

"Yes, Natsu, I'll be choosing who she'll be working with and who she'll be facing, it won't be an easy fight for her so you better make sure her training is up to snuff."

"I'll run her through the Killhouse until it is second nature for her. What will the set-up be like?"

The tapping of a keyboard could be heard through the phone. "Hmm. Right. I have a few layouts planned out; a mansion, shopping mall, an office building, plus a few others in mind that I haven't designed just yet."

Natsu's eyes flicked over to Mira as she sat at her desk. "Mira, where is Lucy? She should be here by now."

"She stopped off at the bathroom and told me to go ahead, we were coming here together." She replied, her eyes glued to the TV as she watched the News with great interest.

"Shoot me an email once you have all the details, Zeref, and I'll read over it and sign off on it."

"Already working on it. Talk later."

Natsu took the phone away from his ear as it flashed red, he placed it on the desk and turned to the News. "How many casualties have been announced?"

"Too many… each tower that they had targeted was a residential building, the toxin spread throughout the tower. The current amount is running close seven hundred though they are still making their way through the buildings." Mira sighed and swivelled her chair to face her monitor. "Since the buildings are contaminated, full protective gear is needed to search them, making it slow work."

The pinkette sighed, softly and filled with a touch of grief. "Unfortunately, I got spotted on the way out, we lost valuable time because of it."

A blonde woman crashed through the door, almost sending it flying off the hinges. Her face was red like she sprinted all the way from the bathroom to the office. "Sorry I'm late! Woah... My head is spinning…"

Natsu looked over as Lucy held her head to try and steady it. "That happens when you are still getting used the Enhancements. Speaking of which, how are you feeling?"

"Light, very light." Lucy slowly took her hands from her head and gazed at them. "I was running so fast on the way here, it usually takes me five minutes… it barely even took half of that."

"Careful with it because unless you are like Jet, who can naturally augment himself with speed based magic, you will tire yourself out very quickly if you maintain top speed for too long." Mira informed her as she flicked through a bunch of papers, some containing random doodles that she had drawn.

"That being said, train hard and train often. You'll be able to get the most out of your augmentations that way." The pinkette added as he placed his notepad away from prying eyes and put his boot-clad feet up on the desk, his hands slipping behind his head.

"How so, Sir?"

"Lucy. Stop calling me Sir. Natsu is fine." His eyes narrowed, showing his irritation at the title to the woman as she hid a smirk behind her hand.

"To answer your question." Mira placed the papers aside and stood up from her chair. She dusted off her lap and walked around the desk to the blonde. "Natsu is part of a small group of Agents, he is classed as Hyper Lethal thanks to all of his abilities."

"Mira and Erza both fall into this category too, Mira for her devastating transformations, and Erza for her combat prowess and psionic powers."

"Forgive my wording, Sir." Lucy stifled a giggle as Natsu grumbled under his breath. "But what makes you so special?"

The man sighed and turned to his handler. "Show her my file, the one without black ink. She deserves to know."

"Alright." Mira leant over her desk and opened the top draw. She mumbled to herself as she ran her fingers over the files contained within until she found the one she was after. She spun around and held it out for Lucy "Here it is, take a seat as it is a bit of a read."

"Oh… ok." She looked a little flabbergasted as she took the file from Mira and sat on a nearby couch.

The woman opened the file and finely skimmed her eyes over it, murmuring the contents every so often. "Race: Hybrid…? Human, Etherious, Dragon...?"

Natsu sighed, it hadn't taken her long to find one of his biggest secrets. "Yes, Lucy, I am not wholly human, I was raised by Igneel who is a Fire Dragon though he was disguised as a human."

"Disguised? Fire Dragon?"

"Dragons adopted human Transformation magic as they were being hunted methodically, it was genocide. So they quickly learnt how to fit into human culture, they still exist to this day, walking among humans, the days of their genocide long behind them."

"Seems like even the largest beings have to adapt to survive." Mira turned the TV off as the News was just depressing her. "It's like us mages, while we weren't hunted like the dragons were, magic is seen as very dangerous. Aside from healing magic, that is."

Natsu kept his narrowed eyes set on the blonde woman, gauging her reactions. "This is mainly due to mages being used as shock troopers in militaries worldwide. Mass Media tried to demonised the combat and offensive uses for magic, and though they failed it still had an impact."

Lucy looked up from the file and looked between the two other agents. "Aren't you two wielders of offensive magic?"

"Yes, we are. I use Demon Soul Takeovers, it grants me the powers of the demons that I dominate and then absorb into my body." Mira crossed her arms under her bust as she sat on the edge of the cold, hard desk.

"Whereas I use Fire Dragon magic and Etherious Curses. That's what makes me so dangerous, Lucy, dragon fire is more intense than regular fire but with proper control, it can be used to great effect in both the smallest and largest cases."

"What about your Curses?"

"Most of them are sealed, I can only use an explosive curse right now."

"Sealed?" Lucy turned to Mira, slowly, as her eyebrows rose. "How so?"

"Due to the devastating nature of his curses, Makarov himself needs to authorise the use of them. If it's deemed necessary, Natsu will be given a code phrase given via a special recording in his mark."

"In other words, I don't have access to my full power like the other agents. But I do have both the augmentations from the Enhancement and the ones from my dragon magic too."

Lucy stared at the man, waiting from him to elaborate, her curiosity through the roof.

Natsu sighed and smiled softly. "You know I hate talking about myself, right? It is all in my file but the long and short of it is that I run faster, hit harder and react quicker than any other agent not counting specific magic traits like Jet's speed magic. I also have heightened senses, which helps in combat and stalking targets."

"It basically means he is good at neutralising targets, now throw in the fact that his Enhancement triggered a mutation providing him with accelerated reflexes and you'll get someone who is hard to beat."

"I do have weaknesses through; sensory overload, overwhelming numbers, and well… anything that would kill a normal person anyway. With all my power and skills, a well-placed bullet can still easily take me out."

"Landing that well-placed bullet is a bitch though… Trust me, I have tried during training." Mira smirked, remembering what happened during one of their sparing matches.

Natsu sighed as he ran a hand down his face, he pointed to the model with his thumb. "This bitch pulled a training pistol mid grapple, while I had no protective gear on. She nearly took my eye out..."

Mira giggled uncontrollably, holding her sides to stop herself from falling apart at the deadly look, full of ire, that was being directed at her by the man.

"Anyway. Lucy, I never got to ask before I had to leave for the mission but how did your operation go?"

"Oh. It went well, Doctor Porlyusica told me that there were no complications, my body accepted the Enhancement serum very well. But she said I have to wait a week for my body to adapt and complete the Enhancement naturally, for the mutations to finish."

"Which means your training is on hold for a week, it will be too dangerous to continue during this time, both for you and anyone I put you up against." Natsu brought up a file on his computer. It held Lucy's training plan. He pushed the schedule back to allow for the recovery period dictated by the Doc. "Hey Mira, do you know if Gray and Erza are on a mission?"

"Unless they have been assigned an emergency mission overnight, they should still be here."

"Cool, do either of you have any plans for the next few days?"

Both women shook their head, neither had planned anything besides their beauty sleep. Mira tilted her head curiously at the man. "Why did you want to know?"

"Let's all spend the day at my place, just lounging around and hanging out. Us three, Lis, Erza, and Gray?"

"Sounds like a plan, Sir." A mischievous glint flickered in Lucy's brown eyes at her words, knowing that it gets on his nerves.

* * *

**Sorry that it has taken forever for me to finish this chapter, I kept finding it hard to just sit down and write the segment after Agent Salamander returned to the HQ. Hope you all like it, feel free to leave a review with any feedback you may have and don't forget to Favourite/Follow if you haven't already. I'll see you all next time (which hopefully will be soon).**


	15. Chapter 15

"Hey, Natsu. How about some of these?"

Natsu turned to his blue-haired adopted son. They were out shopping for food and Happy drew his attention to a selection of fish. "I could do up a couple of fish-based dishes, wasn't my original plan but sometimes you need to improvise."

The young, somewhat lanky, teenaged boy looked up at the man, his hands in the pockets of his blue hoodie. The only thing betraying his human look were the two blue ears on top of his head and the white-tipped blue tail wrapped around the waist of his dark green jeans. "What were you planning?"

"Well, it is getting close to Christmas time, so I was thinking something Christmassy, but then I thought about a succulent slow-roasted pork belly."

"That sounds really tasty!" The Exceed's eyes lit up brightly, like miniature stars, as his mouth watered at his dad's idea.

"It should be, hopefully." He put some salmon into the trolley anyway, so he can make something for Happy.

Natsu's shoes tapped a steady, unwavering beat on the tiled floor as the man and exceed walked through the aisles.

"Can I have some chocolates, Natsu?"

"Sure, but only one. Pretty sure Mira and Lis would kill me if I let you gorge yourself on chocolates."

Happy looked through the shelves, looking for the largest packet of chocolate he can get while Natsu busied himself with his shopping list.

The sounds of police sirens in the distance caused Natsu's eyes to narrow. They sounded like they were coming closer.

"Got one!" The young, blue-haired teen walked back to the man and placed the biggest chocolate he could find into the trolley, making Natsu chuckle.

"Of course you picked that one. Alright, you can have it. Just don't let Mira or Lis see it." He double-checked the list and smiled, satisfied that he had gotten everything he needed. "Alright, let's go to the checkout and get out of here."

As they reached the checkout, Natsu's instincts were setting off alarms in his head. The sirens were getting real close now, he could easily pick out how many there were through the loud mess of noise

Six, there were six of them. Coming closer and closer.

"Sir?"

"Huh?" Natsu shook his head and focused on the attendant at the register. "Ah, sorry, I was lost in thought."

Just as the man paid for the groceries, the peaceful atmosphere was shredded by the roaring of engines and screeching tyres.

"Get Down. NOW!" Natsu roared as his Reflex ability kicked in, pulling the attendant over the counter in a flash and pushing him and Happy to the floor.

A massive SUV careened through the large glass window at a high speed, sending shards flying into the store like a shotgun blast.

In the brief moment that his head was peeking over the counter, Natsu saw that the blue SUV had bullet holes along its flanks. There had been a shoot-off between the occupants and the police.

These people were armed…

The vehicle collided with the counter that the pinkette was just served at, ripping it from the foundation and shunting it along the floor, sending the three of them skidding along the floor.

The doors to the SUV burst open, followed by four gunmen, they looked fresh from a heist of some sorts.

One of them, the leader by the look of it, motioned to the others. "Grab hostages, I don't care how many."

The police cars swarmed around the hole, coming to a rapid stop.

"You three! Come with me!" One of the gunmen raised their rifle at Natsu, Happy, and the attendant. Leaving them with little other option but to comply.

Happy looked up at his father, he saw the sour look on his face, the unbelievably hard eyes. He was ready for action and Happy knew it.

They were prodded and herded like cattle into a small cluster of hostages behind makeshift cover as the officers took up positions outside.

"Natsu?"

The man just shook his head, silently, at his son. Carefully planning his moves as his eyes swept around the gunmen.

"Drop Your Weapons And Come Out With Your Hands Up!"

The voice boomed throughout the store, it was a policewoman giving the command through a loudspeaker.

"FUCK OFF WE WILL." One of the gunmen aimed over the cover and blindly shot out the hole.

"Calm down, P. While we have hostages, they won't do shit."

The leader looked around the hostages before his eyes came to rest on a blue-haired teen with cat ears. "Put the boy on the counter."

The gunman called P grabbed Happy by his collar and hoisted him up onto the cover, aiming a large revolver at his head. "What now, C?"

C raised up a little but stayed hidden behind the counter. "PULL YOUR OFFICERS BACK THREE BLOCKS FOR TEN MINUTES, I DON'T NEED TO TELL YOU WHAT WOULD HAPPEN TO THIS KID OTHERWISE."

He looked around at the hostages, spotting Natsu glaring at him with murderous intent. "Heh. Is that your son or something?"

Natsu was about to move forward when he was forced onto his back, the leader's boot pressing him to the floor as the man stood above him.

C levelled his pistol at the pinkette. "How about you join him in death."

A sickening crunch echoed through the group as C's knee was completely shattered by a single punch from the pinkette. Causing the gunman to topple over.

The Agent sprang into action, rapidly bringing his legs up and slamming his feet into the man, crushing bones and rupturing organs while the force had launched him into the air hard enough to hit the ceiling, audibly.

A flash of steel followed in a split second as a Bowie Knife flew through the air and found a home, nestled between the gunman's eyes, just as the man had hit the ceiling.

The pinkette flipped up into his feet as the three gunmen turned their weapons on the agent.

P pulled the trigger but the man already had a hand on the revolver, causing the hammer to be blocked by his thumb.

Sal showed no sign of pain from the hammer colliding with his thumb as he cocked his arm back and delivered a devastating punch to the man's face, decimating his nose and jaw as blood and teeth showered the remaining gunmen.

His arm flew back once more as he latched onto his Bowie Knife from the falling body. Ripping the knife from the skull as he drove it into the side of P's head.

The Agent yanked the knife from the dead man as he spun around, the knife slipping from his hand and embedding into the third gunman's head. Snapping it back from the force of the collision.

Sal launched forwards, grabbing the handle of the blade and driving the knife through the top of the skull as his arm punched forward.

A flash of steel was followed by a geyser of crimson as the fourth's head rolled off from their shoulders.

Thud… The first body had hit the ground…

"You alright, Kiddo?" Natsu glanced at Happy as he walked back over to P.

"Just peachy." The young teen turned around on the counter and smiled at his father, he pointed at the trolley they had used. "Groceries are fine too."

"Check the eggs for me, hopefully they aren't broken." The pinkette leaned down and cleaned the knife on the body's clothing before sending it away with a faint glow.

"Holy Fuck…!"

"Hmm?" He straightened back up, coming face-to-face with Officer Rose. "Huh, Alexia. How are you? Is Allie with you?"

"Eggs are broken, Natsu." Happy called out as he removed the carton from the bag and cleaned the other groceries. "Everything else is fine.

"What The Hell Happened Here?" The Officer stared at the carnage as the other officers entered the building, among them was Officer Jordan.

"Oh, hey Allie, there you are." Natsu glanced at the other Officer that he knew then looked around him before turning back to Alexia. "I was just doing some grocery shopping. Happy, could you grab us another carton of eggs, and get yourself another chocolate bar, for being a brave little man."

"Sweet!" The Exceed raced off down the aisles to collect his prize, and the eggs.

"I… I thought something was up back at that café…" Allie murmured as she walked to Alexia's side, staring at the bodies on the floor. "When you quickly disarmed that would-be thief. It looked too… professional."

The six other officers had their weapons trained on Natsu, seeing him as a threat greater than the gunmen.

Happy practically pranced as he returned to Natsu's side. "Got them! …Why are the Officers pointing guns at you?"

The pinkette slowly raised his hands up beside his head as he let out a soft sigh, his eyes narrowing. "Happy, take the keys from my pocket and load up the car, please."

"We saw everything that happened… Natsu." Alexia watched as the teen reached into a pocket and pulled out some car keys. Happy hummed as he went to the trolley and placed the new goods into a bag. "We had a report come in from a precinct in Calico; Black Hemi Cuda, professional driver, it was racing after the vans that were involved in the attack there."

"Sound familiar?" Allie crossed her arms over her bulletproof vest. "It should, the description matches your car, and the skills too."

"The report was pulled down mere minutes after it went up. As if that wasn't suspicious enough, orders came through not to peruse the Black Hemi Cuda."

Natsu looked between the two policewomen, not moving from his spot or lowering his arms. He stayed silent, wondering where they were heading with this.

"I did some digging around, traffic cams, CCTV cameras inside the garages. Every time that car was due to appear, the cameras either shut off or become filled with static." Alexia pointed at the pinkette. "Nothing appeared until later that day, after the storm had gone away. The Black Hemi Cuda appeared, leaving Calico and heading in the direction of Magnolia. The same car that is parked outside this very shopping centre…"

The pause lasted close to a minute, the tension in the air was so thick that it could have been slice through.

Alexia sighed as she dropped her arm to her side, her shoulders slumping. "Just who the hell are you, Natsu?"

The man slowly lowered his arm, relaxing even though he still had six guns trained on him. "You two come with me, we'll talk by my car. The rest can clean up."

As he walked past the officers, one of them grabbed his arm, a man. "Where do you think you're going?"

Natsu turned to the man and stared him dead in the eyes. "You just saw me kill four men before the first had even hit the ground, with only one knife. What the fuck do you think you can do?"

The Officer was shocked at the man's comment and didn't resist when he pulled his arm free and walked off.

Natsu didn't stop until he was standing beside his car in the lightly falling snow. He reached into it pocket and grabbed out his phone to make a quick call.

"How can I help you, Natsu?"

"Gramps, I'm not sure how to proceed… I was involved in a hostage situation, there were four gunmen and they had decided to make an example out of Happy. He is uninjured and I took out the gunmen but now I am being questioned by these two Magnolia Police Officers that I know."

"What do they know?"

"They have figured out that my car was the one that was chasing the vans in Calico, and that it was me driving it. That and how efficiently I neutralised hostiles both here and the one I disarmed in front of them, that one had a gun to the back of my head."

"I see." There was a short pause before Makarov spoke up again. "And what are they doing now? I assume they are at the scene right now?"

"They want to question me, it seems to be off the record, and just the two of them."

"Hmm… Tell them the basics, if they try and push for more information, then just stonewall them."

Natsu turned his head and looked out of the corner of his eye at the two women approaching him. "Thanks, Sir, I've got this from here."

"Good luck, Natsu."

The man placed the phone into his pocket as he turned to face the Officers. "So what do you want to know?"

Alexia sighed and stared at the car, it was the exact same one she saw on the security cameras. "Just who are you, Natsu?"

"Before I tell you, I need you to promise me that this doesn't go beyond you two. I don't need the entire police force to know who I am. Don't even tell your closest friends and family."

The women both looked at each other, somehow communicating silently before nodding to the pinkette. "We promise not to tell a soul."

Natsu narrowed his eyes and watched the two officers carefully, gauging the validity of their words. A few moments of silence passed before the man finally spoke up. "Alright. I'll tell you. To answer your first question; I am Natsu Dragneel."

"We knew that already, your police record told us that." Allie said before leaning past the man and waving at the boy enjoying his chocolate inside the car who waved back happily. "Who is the kid?"

"Easy. That is Happy, my adopted son. He is an Exceed who I taught Transformation magic so he can fit in better."

"Wait, you know magic?" Alexia looked at the man, shocked but curious, her eyebrows raising. "What kind?"

"Yes, I'm a mage, I know many different types of magic; Requip and Transformation magic are what I find most useful."

Happy got out of the car, a spring in his step as he stood beside the man. "Did I hear my name? Oh, Natsu, we are out of chocolate."

"Yes, Happy, we were just talking about you. Hey, wait, you already ate it all?"

"Yup!"

"Moving on." Alexia scratched her cheek gently in thought. "As we said, your record told us your name but we noticed that even though you have numerous Street Racing and Speeding offences, your vehicles still haven't been impounded…"

"Well I'm not surprised, it _is_ company property. They would want to keep their assets in company hands."

"And what company would this be?"

"The FTA." Happy cheered as he pointed at the building in the distance. "Natsu is an Agent there."

"Well, the cat let himself out of the bag on that one… Yes, I'm an Agent with the FTA." Natsu watched the shocked cops' jaws drop as they stared at him in disbelief, but he could see the gears turning in their head, the puzzle pieces falling into place. "I am Agent Salamander. Happy to meet you two."

"We must be in an action movie, Allie…"

"Yeah… Like James Bond or something…"

"It kinda makes sense though… It explains all of the evidence."

"Look." The pinkette requipped a notepad and a pen. He quickly but neatly wrote down his address twice and handed one to both of the cops. "I will be having dinner with some of the other Agents tonight at my house, if you want me to answer some more questions, you know where to find me. They might be willing to answer some too. Just, err, be careful, sometimes we get a bit rowdy."

"Oh. What should we wear?" Allie looked between Alexia and Natsu then down at the piece of paper in her hand.

"Whatever you like, it is just something for us to celebrate and relax for Christmas as chances are that we'll be busy. Well, I know I will, I have an agent to train so I have little time to relax."

"Before you go Natsu, that story about someone having a shootout on the highway on a bike?" Alexia asked, her eyes brimming with curiosity and eagerness.

"That was me, yes I did jump the bike into the back of an Osprey." Natsu chuckled and walked to the other side of the car. "I gotta go have a shower and wash this blood off me, so I'll see you two tonight if you come."

"Of course we'll come! I want to hear some of your stories!" Alexia was practically jumping with excitement as the man waved goodbye at them and headed home.

* * *

**Natsu's House, Magnolia, 5:30pm**

Mira sat on a workbench in Natsu's garage, wearing her a leather boob tube and matching short skirt under one of Natsu's warm jackets, her legs swinging under the bench as she hummed a quiet tune.

She reached up and tied her hands as she watched Natsu as he laid under his car, giving it a quick oil change.

He was only in a pair of grey jeans, the belt buckle fashioned into the shape of a curled up dragon. "Mira, can you grab that Oil Filter from the box."

"Sure." The white-haired model hopped off the bench and wandered over to the Parts Cabinet and took out what he had asked for, just as a car parked out by the end of the driveway, drawing her attention. "A car I don't recognise just pulled up."

"What does it look like?" Natsu asked, he reached out from under the car and took the filter from the woman when she walked to his legs.

"A small, red, four-door, looks like only two people inside. Both female."

Moments later, quiet voices reached his ears. "Are you sure this is the place, Allie…? I don't see his car."

"It's what the GPS said, look, one of the garage doors is open, maybe we should just peek inside a little and see?"

"Why don't we get patrols out this way? It's such a nice area."

"That is probably why."

Natsu finished up under the car and slid out from under it on the creeper trolley he had borrowed from FTA's mechanical workshop. "It's just my two cop friends, don't worry about them."

Mira watched him, curiously, as he went to the wash trough in the corner of the garage. "You have cop friends? I thought you hated cops."

"I don't hate cops, I just find they get in the way of our work too often. Anyway, these two women are very nice."

"U-uh H-hello?" Alexia stumbled on her words as she peeked around the door, she lost the scissors-paper-rock battle and was very nervous, but it faded quickly when she came face-to-face with the familiar car. "Natsu?"

Mira walked around to the open garage door. "He is just washing his hands, he won't be long."

The two off-duty officers just gawked at the beauty, they never expected to meet one of Fiore's Top Models, Mirajane Strauss, in the flesh.

Allie blinked rapidly, her brain slowly coming back around. "A-are you-u… Mirajane, Mirajane Strauss?"

The white-haired woman beamed a happy smile, her porcelain skin shining in the moonlight. "Yes, that's me, who were you two? Natsu told me you were some police friends of his."

"I'm Allie Jordan, this is Alexia Rose, she is a fan of yours."

"Allie, I must say, your dress compliments your eyes, and your hair." Mira ran her eyes down the officer's body, admiring how her sparkling green strapless dress matched her eyes and flaming red hair. "Your, accent, is it Irish?"

Allie blushed at the model's complement, and how she picked up the accent, after so long in Fiore her accent had become watered down. "Yes. How could you tell?"

"I'm good with accents." Mira smiled and turned her eyes on Alexia. "You look beautiful too, Alexia, Olive skin with a Toffee coloured Halter Dress, it's a good match." She reached forward and gently played with one of Alexia's locks of hair. "Such a beautiful and dark shade of blonde, looks natural too."

Alexia's face exploded in a blush, she curled a lock of hair around a finger meekly and mumbled shyly. "T-thanks for the compliment, it is my natural hair colour."

"You both have amazing figures, slim but toned. You two must get so many men drooling over you. I bet they see you two, they'd break the law just to be pulled over by such beautiful women."

"OK, stop giving them blushes to rival Erza's hair, Mira." Natsu chuckled as he walked around his car, he was drying his hands on a pristine white cloth.

The two officers' eyes were immediately drawn to the man's shirtless torso, littered with scars that told stories of the missions he had been on.

"Pretty sure Erza's hair is as red as red can be." Mira giggled, she smiled at the two women and waved them into the garage. "Come in, it's cold out there."

"So umm…" Alexia mumbled as she played with her fingers while following the model into the garage, the door closing behind them. "How do you two know each other?"

"Don't worry about dancing around the subject Mira, they worked out that I wasn't just some guy, they were doing a little private investigating into me and found that I was more than I seemed. Plus they were at that incident from today that I told you about."

"Oh, so these are the two cops that found you out?" Mira looked between Natsu and the two women. Surprise was written all over her face. "But they are so cute and beautiful… I was expecting big brutish men."

"Anyway." The pinkette leant on the workbench opposite the front of his car. He pointed at the white-haired woman, offhandedly. "This is Mirajane Strauss, Fiore's Top Model and Agent for the FTA."

"And I'm his boss."

"No, she is my handler. She gives me orders and updates when I am out in the field."

"So she is your boss." Alexia said, the corners of her lips spreading into a smirk.

"No."

"She sounds like your boss to me." The dark-blonde-haired woman giggled, playfully, as she crossed her arms.

"See, she understands it completely." Mira giggled too, she was beginning to really like this woman.

Natsu shook his head, failing to hide the smile on his face as he grabbed a bottle of oil and poured it into a measuring jug. "I'm only telling this to you two as my actual boss, Makarov, has allowed me to fill you in on some things. But not everything, for obvious reasons."

"So… You are an agent, Miss Strauss?" Allie asked as she edged her way to the car, she had a secret passion for anything with an engine and was dying to see what was inside it.

"Please, just call me Mira, and yes. I'm an Agent, just like Natsu here."

"But… you're so… …womanly." Alexia squeezed the air, alluding to Mira's soft and supple body, she would have thought that Agents would have been hulking masses of roided muscle.

Mira blushed and giggled as she rests a hand on the top of one of her breast. "I admit, I am fairly blessed in the chest, and other places, but that doesn't mean I can't be an agent."

"Don't let her looks make you underestimate her she can kick my ass." Natsu chuckled at the shocked faces as he walked to the car with the jug of oil.

Allie gasped in shock as her eyes fell upon the engine, she couldn't help but mumble. "Holy shit…" Her eyes resembled a deer caught in headlights. "Umm… Alexia… Never try and chase down this car…"

"Why?" The blonde wandered over and looked at the engine, she let out a low whistle. "Is this a Dodge Viper engine?"

Allie nodded, her eyes drifting over every last inch of the engine bay. "It's an SRT 10 engine, 8.4L V10, aftermarket twin-turbo setup…" She looked up at the man. "How do you keep this thing on the road?"

"It's actually has a Stroker kit installed, so it's a 9L twin-turbo, hooked up to a custom-built All-Wheel-Drive transmission, designed to withstand the torque that beast of an engine puts down. The suspension is all custom made as well to ensure that this car won't slip and slide unless I want it to." Natsu poured the required amount of Oil into the engine, slowly. "It's all done in-house at the FTA."

"Yeah… You won't be able to catch this thing, Alexia." The redhead squirmed about, trying to hide her eagerness to get her hands on the car, to touch it and satisfy her curiosity.

"Hey, Natsu. Since you're basically like James Bond. Does this car have any hidden gadgets?" Alexia playfully asked as she lightly bounced on the balls of her feet. "You know, like Caltrops, hidden machine guns, ejector seats?"

Natsu burst out laughing and had to stop pouring the oil otherwise he would have dumped it on the engine. "No, no, there is no secret spy gadgets in it, just a medkit. Hey Mira, there is an idea. Should we watch James Bond?"

"Sounds good, but I get to pick the first one we watch."

The pinkette took a few deep breaths to calm himself and finished topping up the oil. He replaced the cap then cleaned the jug, then he closed the bonnet and took the car off the stands. "Alright, let's go inside."

"What do you call her?" Allie looked between the man and the car, one last time before the women followed Natsu into the main part of the house.

"The car is called Frankenstein by the mechanic who made it, but its official name is Black Mamba."

"Fitting." The redhead giggled to herself.

"Hey…" Natsu came to a stop as he entered the lounge room, Lisanna had come with Mira but what shocked him were the other agents, Lucy, Gray, Erza, Zeref, and Mavis.

They were all lounging around the room, listening to the angelic voice of Lisanna as she strummed away at an acoustic guitar and sang a soft song.

"When did you all turn up?" He was puzzled, he never even heard them enter the house, let alone arrive at the house. "You could have made yourselves known."

"Oh, don't mind us." Gray looked over to the kitchen where the pinkette stood, he raised up a bottle of Amber Lager. "We're just helping ourselves to your hospital while we waited for you."

Lucy giggled, she was a little more than buzzed from her Hard Seltzer. "Did you know that your back door was locked, Sir~? It didn't stop us from getting in though, you might want to look into harder-to-pick locks." The blonde waved a set of picks that she had near her before sending them away with a faint glow of light.

"Sir?" Alexia looked at the pinkette as the man ran a hand down his face.

"Lucy, _why_ did you pick my door… The garage was open for a reason."

"Because *giggle* Sir~. It was more fun that way."

Erza watched the two bicker with a highly amused look on her face. She had made herself a Strawberry Daiquiri with ingredients she had found in Natsu's kitchen. "You'll have to forgive Lucy's antics, Natsu, she was already drinking when I turned up at her house to pick her up. Anyway, I couldn't help but smell something delicious in the kitchen though?"

"It's succulent slow-roasted pork belly." Natsu sighed and shook his head. He turned to the two off-duty officers. "Well, as you can see, these are my co-workers slash family. Everyone, Makarov has given the go-ahead on talking about our work to these two."

"Ah, he filled me in on the incident from earlier…" Erza rose from the couch, drink in hand, as Lisanna finished her song. "Allow me to introduce everyone. I am Erza Scarlet, Agent Knight."

The redhead pointed across the room. "The drunk, giggling, blonde mess over there is Lucy Heartfilia, Agent Celeste."

Erza's lips curled into a sly smile as she pointed to Gray. "That is Gray Fullbuster, resident stripper and Agent Frosty."

"Oi, the name is Frost not Frosty! And I'm not a stripper!"

"I'm Zeref Dragneel, Natsu's older brother." The black-haired man smiled and waved at the two women. "I don't go by any codenames as I'm the Head Trainer, I don't do field work anymore."

Mavis placed her glass of gin on the coffee table and beamed a radiant smile at the officers. "I'm Mavis Dragneel, Zeref is my husband. I don't have any codenames either, but I am the Head Tactician of the FTA."

"We are all Agents here, both current and former, so if you have any questions you can ask away, but we might not be able to answer all of them." Lisanna smiles as she placed her guitar down against the chair she was sat on. "I am Lisanna Strauss, Agent Soul, by the way."

Alexia and Allie could only gape as they stared at the ordinary-looking people around the room, they both were looking like stunned mullets with their jaws on the floor.

Alexia was the first to finally recover. "You… you all look like normal people… Like people I'd bump into while walking down the street. In fact, I think I might have at one point or another…"

"Lisanna…" Allie mumbled before speaking up, she thought she recognised the singing. "Aren't you that singer that I hear on the radio, you did a live show the other day I think…?"

"That's me." The white-haired woman smiled, albeit a little bashfully. "I'm a singer and songwriter. I sometimes sing at big sis' catwalks."

"Wait." Alexia quickly focused on the Strauss Sisters. "Didn't you two do an Angel and Devil piece at a runway recently?"

"Yup." Lisanna chimed as she bounced to her feet, the short white dress swirling around her. "I think that was two weeks ago, or something like that. I was singing a soft song to an orchestra, wearing a flowing white ball gown, when Mira walked out on stage in a black dress with red lace at the halfway point of the song. It quickly changed to a heavy metal rock song with Mira taking the lead."

"Oh my god, it was so amazing! I was in the audience!" Alexia started to fangirl, jumping on the balls of her feet as she became a little hyper.

"You girls find a seat, I'm going to work on dinner." Natsu chuckled as he glanced at the two star-struck women before heading to the kitchen. "Get the movie started."

Mira led the women to vacant seats and hummed as she searched the digital library for the right movie. "We are watching James Bond because irony."

Lucy downed her drink and burst out in drunken raucous laughter. "G-g-get it! Because We Are Agents!"

"How many has she had?" Gray turned to Erza, a look of worry on his face as he had never seen Lucy like this before.

"I lost count, plus like I said, she was drinking when I picked her up."

"Yeah… I don't think she'll remember much of tonight."

Mira giggled and grinned diabolically, her eyes glinting. "We should make her do something embarrassing."

"To be fair." Mavis smiled softly. "I think we don't have to do anything, she'd do it all by herself."

"Yeah, you're probably right. Anyway, I have decided on GoldenEye."

"Ooh!" Lucy giggled as she shakenly rose to her feet. "When do we get issued with our explosive pens!?"

"Err… You'll have to ask Natsu about that…" Erza watched as Lucy stumbled out of the room and up the stairs.

"Natsu~? Where's the toilet~?"

A groan could be heard as Natsu came out of the kitchen. "Oh Kami… She is absolutely hammered, isn't she?"

Zeref was trying so hard to hold back his laughter as tears started to leak from his eyes. Mavis giggled and went upstairs to help the drunken blonde.

"What's this about an explosive pen?" Natsu looked around the room, his eyebrows furling.

Alexia and Allie were too stunned to answer, these people were just like normal people, not some fancy and over-the-top spies. It shocked them to the core and made them question their reality, could other Agents be walking among them, living near them?

"I said we were going to watch GoldenEye… and she asked when she'd be issued with one." Mira's mouth twitched as she tried so desperately not to lose face and collapse into a pile of giggles on the floor.

"It's a bit cold in here, don't you think?" Lisanna shivered slightly and rubbed her arms, she looked up at the shirtless pinkette and gave him a warm smile. "Could you please warm us up?"

"Sure. Dinner will be ready in about ten minutes." Natsu created a ball of fire in his hand, dazzling the two officers with its warm and welcoming, orange, radiant flames. He casually lobbed the flaming orb into the fireplace as he stole Lucy's vacated seat.

The logs in the fireplace erupted into crackling flames the second the fire touched them, filling the room with comforting warmth and a flickering orange glow as Mira dimmed the lights. The warmth soaking through their bodies and filling them with a pleasant, soothing tingle from their skin to their core.

"Put a shirt on, Natsu." Gray complained, blatantly ignoring the fact that he himself was shirtless.

"Only when you can manage to keep yours on for longer than ten minutes when off-duty."

Mira sat down between Natsu's legs and curled her legs over one of his as she leant against his very warm and comfortable body. "I'll start the movie when Mavis and Lucy come back."

"Hopefully Lucy hasn't passed out." Erza sighed and rose to her feet. "I know Mavis can handle it but I should probably check on them anyway…"

"I think I'll grab a drink then." Natsu lightly grabbed Mira by her hips as he stood up, he placed the pouting woman where he was sitting and made his way back to the kitchen once more as Erza headed up the stairs.

"Damn it! I was comfy!"

"Mira!" Happy raced down from his bedroom and threw himself onto the woman's lap, changing from blue-haired boy to an Exceed in mid-air. "Guess what happened today?!"

Lisanna slipped in beside her older sister and started to pet the blue fur-ball, causing him to purr.

"What happened, Happy?" Mira asked as she smiled down at the cute little cat.

"That's Happy?" Alexia blinked in shock and the Exceed sat on the model's lap.

"Oh?" Happy turned around and looked at the two women sitting together. "Oh, hello Officers. Did Natsu invite you over?"

"Yeah, didn't you hear? He invited us when we were questioning him by the car."

"No, not really, I wasn't paying much attention if I'm being honest."

"What happened, Happy?" Mira smiled brightly at the cat. In truth, she already knew what had happened as Natsu made a report about the incident once he got home, and it had passed across her desk at one point during the day.

"So, me and Natsu were shopping earlier, getting stuff for the week, and when we got to the check-out, this car came crashing through the window."

"Oh my… What happened next?" Mira glanced up at the stairs as Erza and Mavis help the drunken blonde back down to the lounge room.

"These men tried to use us as hostages, and were about to shoot me."

"What?!" Erza whipped around in an instant, it was the first she had heard of the incident. "What did I miss!?"

"Me and Natsu were taken hostage by these bank robbers while we were shopping for food and stuff."

"That wouldn't have ended well…" Zeref murmured as he leaned in. "Knowing how protective my brother is, and his Lethality Rating…"

"Lethality Rating?" Allie queried, looking around the room at the somewhat to heavily drunk agents. "What is that?"

"Don't worry about it." Natsu called out from the kitchen. "It's just a little combat rating system we have."

"Anyway~!" Happy cheered as he looked up at Mira. "These men put a gun to my head, then they were on the ground, dead. Then the cops pointed their guns and Natsu but they didn't do anything."

"That was anticlimactic…" Gray muttered as he took a sip of his drink.

"I mean, it was just four people who had no clue who they were dealing with." Natsu said as he returned to the lounge, laden with plates of food that he spread out around the coffee table. "Dig in, Mira can you hit play."

The white-haired model quickly rose up and pushed the pinkette back down onto the spot so she can reclaim his comfortable and warm lap as she hit play on the remote.

The two off-duty police officers were greeted with a faint glow as Erza handed them a pair of scotch tumblers and a bottle of whiskey. "It's only fair that you two share in the fun. You don't have to drink but the invitation is there."

"Oh, thank you." Allie took the offered alcohol and glasses from the redhead and poured the drinks.

"Shh~." Lucy shushed everyone and giggled drunkenly. "Let's watch the movie already~."

Lisanna wrapped her hand around Natsu's wrist and lifted his arm up and over her shoulders as she settled into his warmth to enjoy the movie.

As the movie progressed, few notable things happened. Lucy complained about still not having an explosive pen and started to seek refuge with a bent elbow.

It didn't take long for the Blonde to hit her limit, she collapsed onto Erza's lap as the empty can fell from her hand and rolled under the coffee table.

* * *

The sun rose high on a brand new day, causing Natsu to groan as the sunlight glowed red on his sealed tight eyes.

"Fuck, my head hurts…"

He rubbed the sleep from his eyes and gazed around the bed, feeling two familiar bodies next to him.

The pair of softly breathing bodies were resting snuggly against his sides and from what he can feel, he was completely nude but the two women only had a pair of panties on, their clothes were strewn about the floor.

Judging from their scents, it was Mira and Lisanna. He opened his eyes slowly, becoming momentarily blinded by the light. He groaned once more. "Fucking hell… what did I drink last night?"

The light faded to reveal two white-haired, practically naked women sleeping peacefully with their heads on his chest. Natsu glanced around the room and spotted a few red bottles lying around.

"Ah… That's right… I cracked open my special brew. That explains how I got so wasted so quickly…"

He placed his hand on his forehead, trying to stop his pounding headache to little success. As much as he enjoyed having the Strauss Sisters snuggled up to him, he had to get up and take something for the headache, then piece together what happened last night.

Natsu worked very slowly to dislodge himself from the two women, being careful so he didn't wake them up. He quickly put on some pants and dragged himself out of the bedroom and made his way to the kitchen.

"Someone needs to turn off the sun…"

"Morning~" Came a cheery voice as the pinkette wandered into the kitchen.

Natsu raised his hand, using it as a form of shutters to block out the sunlight coming through the window. "Mavis?"

"Yup~." The man's sister-in-law moved away from the window and walked into the pantry. "You look pale, and very hungover."

"I take it my brother is still out of it?"

The slender woman walked to the fridge then to the man, holding a water bottle and some pills. "He didn't drink the same amount as the rest of you but yeah, he is still in bed. I told him to relax for the day. These are for you."

"Still cutting his sleep short, is he?" Natsu took the medicine and downed it quickly, chasing it with the whole glass of water. "Gahh… Damn, my memory is full of holes… What happened last night?"

"Well..." Mavis giggled softly as she looked over at the lounge room across the bench. "After the movie, we had some games. You and the girls played strip poker, then twister, and then watched another movie."

Natsu walked around and into the lounge to get a better look. There were bottles and cans everywhere.

Gray was passed out and hanging over the back of one of the couches.

Alexia and Allie were both completely naked and huddled together for warmth in front of the smouldering fireplace.

Natsu threw a ball of fire into the fireplace to get the fire roaring once more and heat up the house. This caused both of the officers to groan and awaken.

"Oh Kami… I have a splitting headache…" Alexia pushed herself up off the ground, her dark blonde hair fell down and sprinkled over her chest. "I think I'll have to call in sick today…"

"Well, one of you are awake." The pinkette collected up Alexia and Allie's clothing and brought them over. "Apparently things got pretty crazy last night, I don't remember much."

Allie groaned and turned to face the warmth of the fire, she opened her eyes slowly and gazed into the dancing flames for a solid minute before coming to her senses. "Hey Alexia, did we get drunk and screw each other again?"

"I don't think so, I don't know… What do you think, Hotstuff?" Alexia slumped back down and just stared at the man's abs and the loose pants that didn't really do anything to hide what the man was packing.

"You girls get together often?" Natsu placed the clothes belonging to both of the policewomen down on the floor next to them.

"We're Bi, hots for each other but enjoy men too." Allie mumbled at the fire, she glanced at her clothes and slowly started to put them on.

"Only if they are worth our time though."

"Well." Natsu chuckled softly as he rose from a knee. "We're an open-minded bunch here, so you won't be hearing any crap from us. Now, if you don't mind, I need to go find out where everyone is."

Alexia groaned as she closed her eyes. "Allie, can you call Caleb and say we need the day off."

"Already on it…"

Natsu turned and walked over to his naked raven-haired friend, he gave the man a swift slap across the face to get him to wake up.

"Fuck. I'm Up!" Gray launched into a seated position, wide awake and seemingly in perfectly healthy.

"Rise and shine, sunshine. You look no worse for wear."

"Ice magic. Never had a hangover in my life."

"Lucky bastard."

"How are you going, Natsu?"

"Feels like I have one foot in the grave."

"Heh, so the usual?"

"Pretty much." Natsu grinned as offered to help the man to his feet. "Find your clothes, we have a busy time ahead of us."

With a resounding slap, Gray took the hand of one of his closest, and his best, friends as he matched his grin and rose to his feet. "Give me about ten, I'll be ready to move out."

"I have to find Lucy and Erza, they'll probably be in a room somewhere. Erza would have taken her up and passed out not long after."

"Sounds about right, neither of them could ever handle alcohol very well."

"Wish I could sniff them out, but all I can smell is alcohol right now." Natsu gave his friend a pat on the shoulder then headed back to the stairs.

"Natsu. Could you round up everyone for breakfast." Mavis called out as the man walked past the kitchen. She was frying up a storm to help everyone get through their hangovers.

"Alright, I'll grab Mira and Lis and send them down." The pinkette immediately turned towards his room at the top of the stairs and entered it.

Mira had started to wake, her hand was searching the bed for Natsu's warmth as she mumbled his name as soft as a mouse.

"I'm here." Natsu chuckled as he walked to the bed, he gently took the woman's hand as her eyes fluttered awake.

"Mm, morning Natsu… wow… my head feels like death."

Natsu lowered his voice so he didn't cause the women any distress. "Mavis is making breakfast. When you and Lis feel up to it, you two should head down."

"Alright, we'll be a few minutes." Mira slowly turned over, a smile gracing her beautiful face as she looked into the man's eyes. "I think I'll have a shower and get dressed. Same with Lis."

Natsu placed a kiss on the model's forehead and headed for the door. "I got to go check on Lucy and Erza, they are still unaccounted for."

"Bye~"

The man smiled over his shoulder at Mira as he left the room, he wandered down the hall until he could hear breathing coming from inside a room, there were two pairs, it must be the right room.

Natsu carefully opened the door, making as little noise as possible as he entered the room. He saw Erza splayed out on the floor and Lucy curled up on the bed, half covered by the sheets.

He made his way to the bed and slowly sat down on the edge of it. Placing his hand gently on the Blonde's shoulder and shaking her awake. "Luce, it's time to wake up, we need to get ready for work."

"Mmm." Lucy smacked her lips as she rolled onto her back. "Five more minutes, please… I feel like I've been hit by a plane."

"Alright, if you want to freshen up, the bathroom is on the other side of the hall. Just to the right of this bedroom."

Natsu moved back and knelt down beside Erza's head. "Hey Erza, any lights going on in there?"

There was no response from the redhead, she only shifted about in her sleep.

"Come on Erza. Wakey Wakey." He reached out and lightly patted her cheek, getting a groan and the flutter of her eyes.

"Mm Kami… What happened last night…?"

"I don't remember much, but it seems to have been pretty crazy. Mavis is working on breakfast for everyone."

"Alright, give me maybe… ten minutes to get ready and I'll be down there."

"Do you remember where the bathroom is?"

Erza chuckled softly as she slowly sat up. "My memory isn't _that_ shot."

"Alright, I'll leave you girls to your own devices, see you down in the kitchen." The pinkette stood up and walked over to the door.

A dull light obscured Erza's naked body, fading quickly to reveal a towel wrapped around her. "What's for breakfast?"

"A fry up." Natsu half turned as he reached the door, a soft smile gracing his face. "She is lucky I just went shopping yesterday."

"I'll see you down there. Make sure there are Hash browns for me."

"Heh. You and your Hash browns." The man chuckled to himself as he left the room. He groaned as he stretched his arms above his head. "Yup, relaxation time is over… Time to get back to work."

* * *

**Thanks for reading this chapter, I hope you have enjoyed it. Feel free to send me a review with what you thought of it or if you have any feedback. See you all next time.**


	16. Chapter 16

**FTA HQ, Magnolia, 10:23 am**

"So what do you think of the plan?"

Natsu looked across from one of the screens in front of him, depicting a 3D building layout, to another that had his older brother's face on it. "A three-story complex that simulated the top three floors of a high-rise, correct?"

"Yes, we'll have the team rappel down onto the roof and work their way down by any means possible." Zeref created an arrow on the building plan, it flew down from the air and split into multiple smaller arrows when it hit the roof.

"Will they be facing varying levels of resistance?"

"Yes, and since this is meant to be done as quietly as possible, once they have been detected I will send in a special counter-offensive squad to hunt them."

"Once?" Natsu raised an eyebrow at Zeref as he sat back in his chair. "You think her team will be detected?"

"I have no doubt. This is the first time she'll be in this kind of situation, and anyway, bad calls happen way too often than we all like to admit."

"Yeah, I know what you mean." Natsu looked up as the door to the office opened up. "It'll be interesting to see what happens."

Mira smiled and winked at the pinkette as she walked into the room, she was carrying two mugs of coffee. The woman hair was damp as if she just had a shower. She was in a pair of short black punk rocker style shorts and a fitted black singlet. "Lucy said she is heading to the gym."

The pinkette gave her an understanding nod and turned back to his older brother. "What will they know going into this simulation?"

"Only that the VIP is on the third floor from the roof, the building layout, and that they'll be coming in through the roof. The actual location of the VIP, the number of hostiles in the building, the density of these hostiles, and their patrol patterns all have to be found out during the operation."

"Hmm, interesting." Natsu spun a pen around his thumb as he analysed the building and what Zeref had told him. "Interesting…"

"Something on your mind?" Mira placed a mug of coffee down beside his hand and sat on the edge of the desk as she nursed her own brew. She eyed the man's clothes, he was in black sleek-looking attire.

Black pants with his Glocks strapped to both of his thighs, black combat boots, and topped off with a form-fitting black long sleeve shirt that accented his physique.

The pinkette flicked his thumb, sending the pen flying into his other hand where he continued to spin it around his thumb. "Zeref."

"Yes, Natsu?"

Natsu's green eyes slowly came to rest on the screen with his brother's face. The man had a serious look set on his face like concrete. "Put in a second team, on top of the counter-offensive squad. This team will come up the stairs once Lucy's team hits the middle floor. They will simulate another agency swooping in to try and steal our target."

"Are you sure, Natsu? This would be throwing her into the deep end."

The pinkette powered on, ignoring Zeref's question as his steely eyes bored through the computer screen. "The other agents will be an aggressive task force that will quickly sweep up through the stairwell. They will have better Intel than Lucy's team, it would be a benefit to her if she manages to capture and interrogate even just one of them."

Zeref watched his younger brother very carefully. He was curious as to what his motives were. "Why?"

"Simple." Natsu took a sip of his coffee, not once tearing his eyes away from the black-haired Dragneel. "As much as I have taken a shine to her, I am still her mentor and as such, I want to see what her limits are. How well she is in combat when facing hostiles of various skill levels as well as her mental flexibility when faced with an evolving battlefield."

A smirk slowly spread across Zeref's lips, the man slowly breaking out into laughter. "Yes, very interesting indeed. Alright, but again, I'll be choosing the teams."

"Alright, you have full control over it. If you need anything at all, just give me a quick buzz."

Zeref shut the call, his smirk flashing to a devious grin as mischief shone in his eyes, causing Natsu to blink. Had he imagined this strange change in demeanour…?

"What the fuck…?"

Mira's head turned from the building plan to the pinkette. "What's wrong, Natsu?"

"Zeref… He is up to something." He sighed and placed the mug down on a coaster, his eye twitching in annoyance. "I think he plans on putting me into this test somehow."

"Will you turn him down?"

A few moments passed as Natsu contemplated his answer, he was slowly running his finger around the rim of the mug full of coffee as if it was a wine glass that he was trying to make sing.

"No… No, I don't think I will. I did give him full freedom, and in truth, I want to see how she sorts things out from on the field with my own eyes."

Natsu's screen flashed as his credentials were overridden. It shocked him at first but a video feed from a series of Traffic Cameras, it was titled 'This may interest you. Love, your favourite hacker.' "Heh, damn it Levy. Why can't you show me things normally?"

The man's fit of soft laughter caused Mira to walk over to his computer. "What's she up to this time?"

"This." He pointed at an ocean blue Mercedes SLS that was coming into Magnolia from the Northern Freeway.

There was an information box tagged onto the car, it showed that the car belonged to one Juvia Lockser. "Looks like we have a pair of visitors."

Mira looked at the man then back at the screen, she blinked in slight confusion before remembering the offer that Natsu had made with the two mercenaries. "Ah, I wonder what they have to offer us."

* * *

**Garland Freeway, Northern Magnolia**

"Why the fuck did we have to take your car…?" Gajeel grumbled as he shifted lower in the passenger seat. "It's so fucking tiny."

"Because. If we took your car then we would be suspicious." Juvia glanced at the man as she switched lanes. "Juvia thinks that a Humvee would draw too much attention compared to her beautiful Tsunami."

Gajeel glared at the blunette as she caressed the steering wheel. "Well, it's fucking uncomfortable."

"Stop being a bitch and lay down your seat. Sir." Juvia shoved the man's shoulder gently with a small smile on her face. "Anyway, do you know where their HQ is?"

The studded man pointed out of the driver's side window, out across the city to the waterfront. "It's out there."

"That is very helpful." The woman sighed and glanced out her window. "That's a lot of city to cover to find one building."

"Look, all I know is they're in the Waterfront District of Magnolia."

"I guess that narrows it down a fair bit." Juvia glanced up at the overhead freeway signs and shifted to another lane that was directing them to where they wanted to go.

The display in the centre of the dash lit up, showing an incoming call as the blunette's epic saxophone solo ringtone.

"You're kidding me… Right? That's your ringtone?"

"What's wrong with a little bit of sax?" Juvia looked at the screen and narrowed her eyes. "I don't recognise that number…"

"Probably a miss-dial."

She went to hit the button on her steering wheel to deny the call but it didn't go away, the numbers just started to scramble themselves. "What the hell… Juvia doesn't understand."

"You know, it's not nice to ignore people." A voice came through the speakers, it sounded like the person was grinning.

The scrambling numbles stopped, revealing the name Salamander on the display.

"Agent Salamander?" Juvia blinked quickly. "How did you get Juvia's number?"

"I know a girl, I'm actually watching you two coming down the Garland Freeway as we speak."

Gajeel shifted in his seat and tapped on the display to bring up the GPS. "Well, since you are here. Give us the address of your Headquarters."

"You don't know it?" Natsu sounded confused. "Ok then… the address is public knowledge but give me a quick second."

The display flickered as the man took control of it once more, he inputted the address and set the fastest route to the garage of the HQ.

"How are you messing with Juvia's car?" The bemused blunette asked as she glared at the display.

"Piggybacking your phone's Bluetooth connection to the car. It gives me access to that multifunction display in your dash which allows me to do as I wish to it. I can even play whatever music I want."

"Please don't" She muttered as she took the advised exit. "Juvia has enough to deal with right now, what with Gajeel's complaining about being cramped."

"If we had taken my Humvee, we wouldn't have that problem, would we?"

"To be fair, taking a Humvee into Magnolia would cause a lot of attention to be drawn to you, plus navigating the streets in it would have been a nightmare." Natsu replied, thoughtfully. "Taking that SLS is the better idea. You'll get looks, but they'd be appreciative, and as you get further into the CBD you won't be out of place at all."

"Juvia understands, but Gajeel is just being stubborn. He wanted to make a statement."

"Where are we heading, Salamander?"

"Our garage, don't worry though as you've already been cleared to enter it."

"Thank you, Agent Salamander. Juvia will make sure she arrives soon."

The call ended abruptly, causing the two mercenaries to glance at the display.

"At least _Someone_ was able to answer Juvia's question..."

* * *

Natsu hit a button on his keyboard and leant back in his chair. "They'd be here to talk to Makarov, I bet." He glanced up at Mira, who was sitting on the edge of his desk. "Hopefully we can work this internal conflict to suit us in the long run."

"Hmm." Mira turned his keyboard to face her and brought up the files for Gajeel "Black Steel" Redfox and Juvia "Storm" Lockser. "These two would make good allies for us. Maybe we could put Gajeel at the head of Phantom and have him as a puppet leader?"

"If I know Makarov, he'd probably be looking to bring Phantom into the fold. Weeding out the undesirables and retaining those he sees as good soldiers." Natsu frowned at the screen as he rubbed his chin in thought. "It's an opportunity for us to bolster our portfolio and move into larger-scale Private Security work."

"Do you think he'll put these two into training?" Her silvery-white hair shimmered in the light as it cascaded down her shoulders, she looked between the screens and the pinkette. "They could be an asset."

"They could be, but they'll have to be given a thorough evaluation, just like the rest of them. Actually, probably more so than the rest if they're to become agents."

The woman spun around and planted herself on Natsu's lap. Purposefully grinding her ass against him as she got comfortable and started reading the files. "They have the skills, by the looks of our files. Might need a little polish though."

Her scent drifted into Natsu's nose, drawing his attention to something out of the ordinary. "Are you trying out a new soap or something?"

"Hmm?" She turned her head to look at him. "Yeah, I am. I just bought some new soap on my way to work today. It has made my skin super soft!"

The man trailed his fingers up the inside of her thigh, causing goosebumps to erupt all over it. "It really is very soft."

Mira pouted at him as she squeezed his hand between her thighs. "If you're going to tease me there then the least you could do is stick those fingers inside me."

"Consider it payback, counting towards all those years of teasing you gave me, and still give me."

"You mean bastard." She giggled at the man and hopped off of his lap. "You better go and greet the guests."

"Are you coming with?" Natsu asked as he rose from the chair and moved around to the door.

"No, I'm probably going to meet up with Lucy and run her through some stealth training exercises in preparation for the test she'll be doing."

"Mira, the test is more about teamwork than it is about stealth…"

"Still doesn't hurt, Natsu. You know, she'll be working alongside you most of the time after all. She'll need to be able to keep up with you." Mira walked over to the man and gave him a quick hug. "Treat her well, she's still a bit of a klutz sometimes."

"Ah fuck… that'll make things harder. Hopefully, that'll go away with more training."

"I've sent a report to your email about her hand-to-hand skills. She passes in my books but I know you prefer adaptability, so you'll probably have to do another round of personal training soon."

Natsu placed his hand on the doorknob but kept his attention on the white-haired woman. "What do you recommend?"

"How about Naked Yoga?"

The man flicked her nose as he shook his head. "I wanted to know what you'd recommend to train her, not what you wanted to do in your free time."

"Would you like to come and watch?" Mira smirked up at Natsu as she put her hands on her hips and cocked them to the side. "What if I told you there is nothing under these clothes of mine?"

"Somehow, that doesn't surprise me in the least." Natsu chuckled and opened the door. "I'll come up with something for Lucy later as I need to head to the garage."

"You'll come in me later as well if I have my way." The white-haired woman poked her tongue out playfully and pushed her chest forward to emphasise her breasts. "And on me, over and over."

"Cheeky woman." He put a hand in her hair and messed it up before leaving the room. "I'll see you later."

"Bye Natsu." Mira gave him a bright smile and a wave as he left, she turned and headed to her desk to read up on their visitors.

The pink-haired man took out his phone as he walked down the halls, scrolling through his contacts until he found the right one. He called the number and waited for it to become live. "Director, I'm not sure if Levy has informed you, but we have visitors."

"Yes, I was informed." Makarov replied, he paused for a moment in thought as typing was heard over the phone. "They have been cleared. See that they are brought to my office."

"Yes Sir."

"I hear Zeref has prepared one of the training rooms for Lucy's test?"

"We were talking about it not long ago, I wasn't aware that he had already set up the room?" Natsu blinked and narrowed his eyes at the space in front of him. "When does he plan on running the test?"

"This afternoon, make sure you have Lucy ready for it."

The pinkette sighed as he ran his hand down his face. "I hope she is ready for this…"

"She better be ready for it, considering I plan on sending both of you after that Key that's in Duke Everlue's possession, and I plan on doing it soon."

"Yes Sir, I'll make sure things go smoothly."

"See that you do, I'll see you in my office soon."

"Of course, Sir." Natsu took the phone away from his ear and hung up, he quickly scrolled through the contacts once more.

As he was about to call his blonde protégé he bumped into someone, tearing his eyes from his phone and to the person on the floor. "Sorry… Oh! Hey there, Lucy. I was just about to call you."

"Ow." The woman looked up at Natsu and took his outstretched hand, rising to her feet as she brushed dust off her ass. "You were about to call me, Sir?"

"Yeah. Walk with me, I need to tell you something." Natsu walked around her and continued on his way, leaving the woman to stare at him a little puzzled for a moment before jogging after him. "Lucy, I know it is short notice, but we have a test planned for you later today."

"A test? What for?"

Natsu glanced at Lucy, taking her in. She had a pink and black sports bra on under her loose white singlet which had the FTA logo on it. Lucy also had a pair of matching sports shorts, and white running shoes. Yet she smelled "Did you head to the gym yet?"

"Not yet, I was having brunch with Levy and Lis. Levy couldn't help but bring her work with her though."

"That does sound a lot like Levy, she is always working on something." They reached an elevator and Natsu hit the call button as he turned to face the woman. "Anyway, we have a test planned for you, it's basically a Kill House."

"Basically, Sir?"

"Lucy. Stop calling me Sir…" Natsu pinched the bridge of his nose and let out a sigh. "The Kill House will have real people and you will all be issued with paint rounds instead of live ammo."

Lucy smirked and decided to relent, for now. "Ok, Natsu. So what will the objective be?"

"You'll have to extract a VIP from a simulated high-rise. Coming in from the roof. That is all I can tell you."

The elevator dinged and the doors opened to reveal an empty space. The two Agents filtered into the room and Natsu hit the button to get them to the floor that had the garage.

Natsu leant against the mirrored elevator wall and crossed his arms as he runs his eyes over his protégé. "Mira tells me that you are doing well in her classes. You are also looking pretty toned."

"Thanks, Mira has been helping me with both of those. I'm glad it hasn't completely ruined my looks." Lucy smiled and did a quick pose for the man.

"She also tells me that you are a little bit of a klutz?"

The blonde fell forwards slightly as her head dropped in embarrassment. "Yeah… But I'm getting better."

Natsu placed his hands on her shoulders and straightened the woman up. "Relax, it's all about muscle memory and reflexes. You perceive an incoming threat and react accordingly. It gets easier with time, trust me."

Lucy looked up at the man then smiled. A thought popped in her head and she decided to try and get a quick hit off on him.

Natsu caught her wrist and twisted her arm behind her back as he spun around her and pressed her between himself and the mirrored wall. "Nice try, but better luck next time."

The woman gasped as the cold metal wall collided with her body, her thin singlet doing nothing to stop the cold. It sent a shiver up her spine as she found herself stuck between the extremely warm, cosy body of her mentor and the wall of the elevator.

"Attacking from the front is the worst thing you can do when facing me, Lucy." He backed away from the woman and released her wrist, noting that when she turned around that there was a blush on her cheeks and her heart was racing, yet she didn't look uncomfortable at all. "You have to come at me from a blind spot, and make sure that I can't hear you coming."

"Ok, Natsu." The blushing blonde looked up at the man but couldn't quite look him in the eye just yet, as what her body was feeling made her more than a little self-conscious. "Where are we heading?"

"I'm heading to the garage." Natsu took his place against the wall once more as he glanced up at the floor counter. "I've got to escort a pair of guests to the Director."

"Who are the guests?"

"The head of the splinter faction within the Phantom Lord PMC, we just call them Phantoms. It's the leader and his direct subordinate."

The elevator dinged as it came to a stop and the doors opened. Natsu left the elevator and turned back to Lucy. "You don't have to join me, I just needed to inform you about your test this afternoon. I don't know who Zeref has chosen to take part in the exercise but he wouldn't purposefully disadvantage anyone."

"What should I bring?" Lucy placed a hand on the open door of the elevator, making sure the sensor stays tripped so the doors remain open.

"A pair of full-length pants and a long-sleeve shirt. You'll be given a helmet to stop anything from hitting your head, and a vest to dampen any impact to your chest. Trust me, that last one is particularly useful when it comes to women. I've heard that being shot in the tits really, really hurts during these exercises." Natsu scratched behind his head. "My ears are still ringing from the last time I accidentally shot Mira in the tits."

Lucy cringed as she grabbed one of her boobs out of reflex, she had heard from some of the other agents about how hard the military-grade paint rounds hit. "Ouch… I might put some extra padding on… Just in case."

"If that's your prerogative then so be it, but if I were you then I would wrap them and try to make them as small of a target as possible." Natsu started to move away from the elevator. "Oh, and expect bruising."

"Noted. When is the test?"

"Honestly, I don't know, I guess just wait in my office after lunch and we'll go from there. Mira should still be there so you won't be stuck there alone and bored."

"Alright, I'll see you later…" Lucy stepped back and let the doors close, a smirk flashed to her face as the doors almost sealed shut. "Sir."

"Gods fucking damn it…" Natsu slapped a hand to his face as he let out a sigh. He turned down the hall and headed to the garage.

Thankfully, the elevator that he had chosen dropped him off pretty close to one of the entrances to the garage so he didn't have that far to walk.

The pinkette entered the garage and check the time as he mentally checked how long it would take to get from the Garland Freeway to their HQ. He walked along the line of cars as he headed for the ramp that led to the surface access for ground vehicles.

Natsu looked around at the various cars currently present in the garage but not one matched the one he had seen on the Traffic Cameras. A commotion caught his ears from up the ramp, he started to jog up it to see what it was all about.

As he reached the top, he found Juvia and Gajeel stood in front of the SLS with their hands behind their head, surrounded by security which had their guns trained on the two mercenaries. "What the fuck is going on here?!"

"Sir!" The squad leader spun around on the spot, facing the agent. "These two were trying to come into the garage but they weren't on the whitelist!"

"Salamander, what the hell is going on?!"

"Can it, Black Steel." Natsu threw a sharp look at the pierced man before turning back to the squad leader. "They have clearance. Stand Down."

"With all due respect, Sir." The squad leader took a step forward and got in the agent's face. "It's our duty to guard the perimeter! And these two didn't show up when we checked the list!"

Natsu snarled at the older man, his eyes narrowing at the futile attempt to intimidate him. "You better back the fuck off. Right. Fucking. Now."

"Or what? You'll run off and play super-secret spy? Prance around the halls like you own the place? I should report you to the Director."

"Firstly, I invited these two to come to our HQ. Secondly, the order to do it came from Makarov himself." The snarling agent leant in a little closer. "So I'll give you three seconds to back the fuck up, and stand the fuck down."

The squad leader's hand went down to the FTA standard-issue Ruger LC9 and wrapped around the grip as it sat at his hip. "Or What?"

"Go to draw that gun and you'll be dead before it leaves the holster. Oh, and smile for the camera." The agent pointed to the security camera over his shoulder, recording all that unfolds before it. "Now, as I said. It was on Director Makarov's orders that I was to invite these two down to Magnolia to discuss things well above your paygrade."

Natsu watched the man for a few seconds then turned to the rest of the guards, they still had their weapons half raised but were watching the encounter between their squad leader and the agent who outranks them all. "Stand down, before you poke someone's eye out."

"Belay That Order! Fucking Shoot Them!" The man shouted as he drew his pistol but it was instantly sent flying out of his hand and skidding down the ramp as the point of a large, military-grade Bowie Knife sat less than half an inch from the bridge of his nose.

"I outrank you, you fucking moron. You have no authority to overrule my order. And shooting them would be going against orders directly from the Director himself. On top of that, YOU Would Have Started A Fucking War!" The agent adjusted his grip on the knife as he looked down it at the older man. "Hand in your weapons and badge to the head of your department. You're relieved of service. Now get the fuck out of my sight."

Natsu didn't even give the man time to reply as his knife vanished and he strode between the guards. He looked around the group. "Decide among you which you would prefer to have as the new squad leader. You have two minutes." The man came to a stop in front of the two mercenaries as they lowered their arms. "Sorry about that, seems we need to do a few psych evals, and check our communication channels as you should have been cleared to come through without any issue. Makarov said so himself."

"Agent Salamander, Juvia thinks it's fine. We weren't really expecting a red carpet entrance."

"Just call me Natsu, I'm not on a job right now so there is no need to call me by my moniker." Natsu turned to the guards and crossed his arms. "So who have you chosen to be the new squad leader?"

The man's rock ringtone sounded, announcing an incoming call and drawing his attention away from the group. He pulled out the device and blinked at the caller ID as he quickly answered it. "Director?"

"I've received a report about an incident by the ramps leading into the garage. Care to tell me what happened."

"Yes Sir." The agent looked at the group in front of him and the squad leader standing further away. "I'm assuming you have reviewed the security footage?"

"I have."

"On your orders, the two mercenaries were invited to our facility to meet you. They were meant to be given access yet the squad leader here decided, for whatever reason, to detain them. He went against my orders to stand down. Seemingly insisting that they're a threat and gave his squad the order to open fire. He then challenged me directly, I gave him a chance to back down but as I walked away he drew his pistol, so I pulled one of my knives. I ordered him to head to the head of security and hand in his weapons and badge. And I asked the rest of the squad to decide who among them will be the new squad leader."

"Hmm." There was a short pause before the Director replied. "Put me on speaker."

"Yes Sir." Natsu took his phone away from his ear and pressed on the screen. "All set."

"As Agent Salamander has said, you will pick a new squad leader from among you, choose wisely. As for the former squad leader, I am sending a message to the head of security, you'll be relieved of duty for a month at full pay while you will have free appointments with one of the psychiatrists, you can pick who. Once we have determined if you are still fit for service then you'll be reposted to another division."

"Thank you, Director." The man responded as he headed into the building.

"Now, have the rest of you chosen who will be the new squad leader?"

"Yes Sir." They chorused before one of them took the lead. "We have decided that Rudy will take the place of our leader."

"Good. Go about your usual business, for now. But in an hour's time, Rudy, report to the head of security."

"Yes Director."

The line went dead as Makarov ended the call from his end, causing Natsu to sigh as he put the phone away. "Alright, let them through. I still have my own job to do."

The man looked over his shoulder at the Phantoms. "Head down into the garage and find a spot, any will do. I'll be waiting down there for you." He headed back down the ramp as he heard the car start up behind him.

Natsu put his hands behind his head and yawned quietly as the car cruised past him. He came to a stop at the door he had come through earlier and waited for the two mercenaries.

"You know, I thought that the great FTA HQ would have been larger than this." Gajeel said as he and Juvia approached the salmon-haired man. "It looks small for something of its reputation."

"Don't let the outside fool you. It's larger on the inside." Natsu smirked as he turned and headed down the hall to the elevator.

"Juvia is wondering, what do you mean?"

"I can't answer that, Juvia. It's confidential." The man quickly reached the elevator and hit the call button then turned to the guests. "But put simply, don't let the look of the building fool you as it is much larger than it looks."

"Ok, but Juvia also is wondering… how are you not cold?" The rain woman wrapped her arms around her blue winter coat. "It's snowing outside and you can walk around without any jumpers or coats."

"It's in my nature to be warm all the time, but we have really good heating inside the facility itself, so you won't have to worry about turning to ice."

The elevator dinged to announce its arrival as the doors opened to an empty space, Natsu slipped into it and took the spot next to the buttons as the mercenaries piled in behind him.

"Let's hope he is in the upper office…" The pinkette mumbled as he hit one of the buttons then turned to his company. "Is there anything either of you wants to know?"

"Yeah, I got something." Gajeel's gravelly-toned voice rumbled around the small space. "Where's the nearest place to get food?"

"There are a few spots, but the main Cafeteria is near the offices and conference rooms. So it's on our way to Makarov's office."

"Natsu?" Juvia looked past the man and read the floors on the button panel. "Juvia knows that the FTA utilises modified Ospreys, where do you store them? We drove around the area when looking for the entrance for the garage and we couldn't see any landing pads."

The man thought over his answer as he looked into the woman's deep blue eyes. "There is a courtyard in the centre of the building that acts as a Helipad, and that is why you couldn't see it."

"But that doesn't explain where they go, surely you don't keep them all out in the open on this courtyard?"

"You're pushing your luck, Juvia. I'll just say this, and nothing more. They go underground." The doors opened and Natsu slipped his hands into his pockets as he left the elevator. "Let's stop by the Café and get some food."

"Sounds good to me, Salamander." Gajeel and Juvia followed the man down the hall. Watching as he was saluted by security guards and greeted by various normal looking people. "Who are all these people?"

"The guards are Operators that have chosen to remain here to guard instead of heading out into the field. The others are just standard staff members, they are regular people."

"Huh." The black-haired man murmured as he watched various groups.

A flash of light surrounded Juvia as she removed her coat, leaving her in jeans and a blue blouse that matched her azure hair. She blinked and looked at the man in front of her. "You don't have a Magic Suppression Field active?"

"No, it interferes with our training." Natsu glanced back at the woman. "Well, it does for some of us."

"What do you mean?"

"Simply put, Agents don't rely on magic. We are trained to use it as a supplement to our skills and abilities." The pinkette greeted various staff members and guards on his way down the hall without skipping a beat. "That being said, all of us Agents are mages, but not all mages are Agents. We are carefully chosen based on background checks, psychological evaluations, skills and a bunch of other things."

The two mercenaries shared a glance as they followed the man into a bustling room filled with tables and patrons. The smell of various foods ranging from curries to burgers and even soups flooded their noses and caused their stomachs to stir.

"Gods damn I'm hungry…" Gajeel looked up at the menu as his jaw dropped. The variety was stunning, and it smelt a whole lot better than anything he got his hands on in Phantom.

"Yo Lis!" Natsu smiled as he walked over to the woman behind the counter. "These two are with me, just put their stuff on my tab."

"Afternoon Natsu! Sure, I'd be happy to." Lisanna smiled as she turned to the busty blunette who approached her. "Hi! What's your name?"

"Juvia." She replied as she turned her gaze up to the menu. "Juvia was wondering… what is the hottest thing you have?"

"Are you looking for spice or heat?" The white-haired woman tilted her head in thought as her finger went to her chin.

"Wait… I know that voice…" Gajeel growled out in his gravelly voice, his eyes set on the woman as he clicked his fingers. "You're… one of the Strauss Sisters I think, aren't you?"

"Yes." Natsu held his hand out toward the woman in question. "This is the musician, Lisanna Strauss. Her older sister is the model, Mirajane Strauss."

Juvia's eyes immediately dropped to the woman as recognition flashed into her eyes. "Wait." She turned to Natsu. "The Strauss Sisters work for the FTA?"

"Yup!" Lisanna smiled brightly. "My big sister is Natsu's boss!"

"She's not my boss."

"Yes she is." She playfully smirked at the pinkette. "She told me so herself."

"She is my Handler, not my boss."

"But she gives you orders, so that makes her your boss!" Lisanna giggled at the man's irritation.

"You're both insufferable sometimes…"

"Anyway!" The cheerful young woman turned to Juvia once more. "So, are you looking for something spicy or something hot?"

"Maybe a bit of both? Juvia enjoys eating hot and spicy foods, it warms her body."

"How hot are you willing to go?"

Juvia blinked as her eyes stared off into the distance in thought for a moment. "Juvia would like to try the hottest thing you have."

"Are you sure?" Lisanna asked slowly, her eyes watching the pale woman carefully. When the blunette gave her a nod, Lisanna smiled happily. "One Salamander Special coming up."

The white-haired woman wrote down the order on a piece of paper before looking back up, still with her bright smile.

Juvia moved aside and let Gajeel take her place. "I'll have a burger with the lot, and a large hot chips with gravy."

"Alright." She wrote the man's order down on the paper before turning to the pinkette. "Would you like the usual, Natsu?"

"Not today, I'll just have a medium Meatlovers pizza." Natsu waved to the woman as he made his way to an empty table. "We'll be over here."

The group took a seat around the table, forming a triangle. Natsu glanced at both of the mercs and leaned in. "Anything else either of you would like to know?"

"Juvia would like to know… about the boy…" The woman spoke quietly, mumbling the sentence as her eyes sat focused upon the salt and pepper shakers in the centre of the table. "What is he up to?"

"Ah, I was wondering when this subject would come up." Natsu sighed softly and took a look around the room. "Word of warning, don't mention who you work for, even if you are asked directly." He leant back again as he mentally prepared himself for the subject. "In truth, Romeo doesn't talk to me much anymore. I do catch the occasional glances though, nothing malicious but I think that seeing me reminds him of the night I told him that his dad died."

Gajeel remained quiet, this wasn't a topic that he wanted to cover, though he felt bad about it too. He tried justifying it as just another job but that didn't do anything to stop the guilt, which grew worse when they found out about the kid.

"Could we see him? Juvia would like to try to apologise."

"No. And it isn't because I don't want you to see him. It's because I don't believe he would react very well to seeing people who had a hand in it." Natsu's eyes roamed the Café, examining each person currently in the room to see if they recognised the two people he was sat with. "He may not be an agent, but he was trained by them, by myself. So while he isn't really a threat, I can't risk the chance that he does something stupid."

"But…"

The pinkette's eyes snapped to the woman, his features and voice becoming as hard as steel. "Don't. Don't even think about trying. I want to avoid a conflict while you two are here. I may believe that you two never intended for him to die, but there are people here who aren't so forgiving."

"And you aren't very forgiving, to begin with." Gajeel finally broke his silence, but he did so quietly. "You are known for being very ruthless and highly dangerous, and if you decide that someone would be less of a danger if they were dead then you wouldn't hesitate to eliminate them."

"I have my moments when I'm like that, I admit. We all do."

"We have you listed as "Do not engage, avoid at all costs" when we aren't working with the FTA, Salamander."

"That's not surprising." A woman said, causing their attention to snap to her. It was Lisanna with Juvia's and Gajeel's food. "Considering our own records have Natsu marked as Hyper-lethal, your records would have something along those lines too."

Juvia blinked at the woman, she wasn't hostile but there was still an edge to her voice that made the rain woman realise that she knew about them. "Thank you for the food, but what do you mean?"

"No point hiding it, Juvia." Gajeel sighed as he eyed the white-haired woman. "I could tell that she had us pegged from the moment she saw us."

"My sister is Natsu's handler. So, of course I know who you two are, I've seen his live feeds from his fieldwork." Lisanna placed the dishes down onto the table and turned to Natsu. "I'm guessing this is about how their group has splintered in two?"

"Hit the nail on the head, Lis." Natsu shook his head slightly as he let out a small sigh. "Don't let it spread around. While they are with me, they'll be fine, but we have already had an incident that I believe is linked to Macao. Plus, I believe Makarov wants to keep this quiet until it is time."

"Don't worry, I'll keep my mouth shut on the subject. But be careful as people still hold resentment towards your faction." The woman crossed her arms under her bust as she frowned at the two Phantoms. "Try not to draw attention to yourselves, and don't go wandering to places you shouldn't be going without an escort. Natsu, your pizza will be a little bit longer."

As Lisanna turned and walked back to the counter, Juvia's eyes dropped to the bowl of curry, it smelt delicious but she could tell that it would be hot by the way it tickled her nose. "Why is it named the Salamander Special?"

"Because I was dared to make the hottest, spiciest curry I could, all without sacrificing flavour. And now it has become a challenge around here, people see how long they can last before having to wash it down with milk." The pinkette grinned as he leant back in his seat. "It doesn't hit you in the first spoonful, but as you eat more and more the heat accumulates and it starts packing a real punch."

"Juvia thinks it smells great. Could you please get her an iced coffee?"

"Sure." Natsu rose from his chair and headed to the counter.

"How is your burger, Gajeel?"

"Big, juicy, and delicious." He mumbled back as he took another bite out of the burger. "Mmm"

Juvia glanced at the man then looked back down to her bowl of curry, she dipped her spoon into it and ferried half a spoonful to her mouth. It wasn't as bad as she was expecting, she found it very rich in flavour and it made her want more.

Natsu returned with a bottle of iced coffee, smiling at the two mercs that were digging into their food with great gusto. He noticed that a pink colour was starting to flood Juvia's usually pale skin. "Found the heat have you?"

Juvia's eyes were watering as she looked up at the man, nodding and watching as he placed the drink down next to the bowl and sat down.

"Salut, Monsieur Salamander."

The pinkette looked up at the familiar voice. "Oh, hey there Genevieve." He smiled at the maid, noticing her dirty blonde hair was tied up in her usual elaborate bun.

Her green eyes sparkled like emeralds as she held the plate with Natsu's pizza. "I see zat someone has decided to try your atrocity… I feel sorry for zem."

Steam had started to rise off of the rain woman as the heat had started to affect her water body. Yet, she didn't reach for the drink at all, preferring to chow down on the curry and take the heat instead of taking the easy way out.

"Come on, Genevieve, it isn't that bad." Natsu chuckled as the maid placed the plate with his pizza down in front of him. "It's just a tad hot."

"Zat monstrosity nearly made my tongue fall off." She pointed at the bowl of curry with indignation. "My poor stomach felt like it was doing ze cartwheels, over and over. Just look at zis poor woman, she looks like she is barely holding it together, and she is steaming!"

The pinkette was trying very hard not to laugh at the woman's exasperation, he placed a hand over his mouth to hold it in as he watched the blonde. "Come on, you don't find it funny when people try and do that challenge?"

"I feel so sorry for zem, Monsieur Salamander… Zey go all red in ze face and chug all ze milk. Especially when you decide to make an event for it…" The woman kissed Natsu's cheek. "I've got to get back to work before Mademoiselle Lisanna breaks out her sister's whip."

"Kinky." Natsu smirked at the woman and nudged her side gently. "Don't you at least find it funny watching them practically turn into walking volcanoes?"

"Secretly?" Genevieve leaned down and gave the man a playful wink. "Yes. It's an especially good punishment for ze ones who get too 'andsy."

The pinkette broke out in laughter as the maid blew him a kiss and twirled away as she walked back to the counter.

Juvia swallowed her mouthful of curry and fanned her face as she watched the woman walk away. "That maid reminds Juvia of Sol, except much better company. Juvia actually likes to have her around, unlike that arsehole."

"Yeah, Genevieve is a very fun person, very quirky. Plus she is very caring and will always have an ear to lend, and will drink with you if you are alone." Natsu smiled and picked up a slice of pizza and bit into it. "The lot of us are really, quirky I mean. In our own ways."

The pink-haired man kept an eye on Juvia, wondering if she'll be able to eat it all without opening the drink that was sat next to her plate.

Once Gajeel had finished, he turned in his seat to watch his subordinate. Very curious as to just how hot the food was but judging by the amount of steam coming off the woman… It was probably very hot.

"You ok there, Juvia?" Natsu asked as the woman resembled a radioactive tomato, he watched as the woman tugged at her top to try and cool her chest down.

Juvia looked at the man with watery eyes, her voice was strained as she tried to speak. "J-Juvia is fine, but she might need to spend an hour in a freezer to cool off."

"Or maybe we go to the courtyard or the rooftops and you can roll around in the snow for a bit." Natsu chuckled as he watched the woman with a smile. He had to give her credit, she had almost completely finished the meal and hadn't yet cracked open the seal on the bottle.

"Don't get Juvia wrong, she loves the heat, but she just needs to cool off after it."

The salmon-haired man kept his eyes on the woman, watching her finish the entire bowl of Salamander Special as he ate his pizza. He was surprised at her tolerance and dedication to finish the food.

Once the bowl was empty, Juvia grabbed the bottle and gulped down the contents as quickly as she could to wash away the heat. "Oh Gods… Juvia has never had anything that intense before. She might have to come back and eat more whenever she has the chance."

"I don't mind giving you the recipe for it, Juvia, since you seemed to have enjoyed it so much." Natsu held out his hand to her. "Could I borrow your phone so I can make a note for you?"

"Here, this is Juvia's private phone." The woman reached into her pocket and took the device out, she navigated to the Notes app and handed it to the man. "Juvia hopes that the one she makes will be on par with this one."

"Juvia, I'm sure it will be fine as long as you follow my recipe. You can use it as a base for a milder one too if you wish, but from what I saw just know I don't think that'll be the case." The pinkette hummed softly as he jotted down the full recipe. Once he finished, he quickly went to her Contacts and added one for him under his name and put his number in it. He closed it all down and handed it back to the woman. "There you go, one very hot and spicy curry."

"Thank you, Juvia will do her best to replicate it."

Natsu polished off the last of his lunch and took their dishes to the counter, he kept an eye on the surrounding FTA personal just in case things started to turn sour. "Thanks for the lunch, Lis." He smiled at the woman as he placed the crockery on the counter. "Juvia seemed to take to the Salamander Special fairly well."

"She is looking a little hot under the collar though, Natsu." The woman glanced over to the Phantoms who were chatting to each other quietly. "So what's Makarov's idea, bringing them in?"

"Gajeel is the leader of a splinter cell within their PMC, I think he wants to formally strike a deal with Gajeel and offer to lend our support when shit hits the fan."

"As long as their boss gets what's coming, I don't really care. That bastard needs to suffer for what he did to Macao." Lisanna gritted her teeth in anger as she wrung a dishcloth in her hands. "And to poor little Romeo."

"Don't worry, Lis." Natsu placed a calming hand on the woman's shoulder and rubbed it gently. "If I have any say in it, then it won't be a quick death. He deserves to feel our pain, and the pain he inflicted on our brother-in-arms."

"You should get going, I got a message from my big sister just a moment ago, asking about where you were. Apparently you need to take Lucy down to the sim rooms."

"Yeah, she'll be tested to see how well she works within a team."

"Oh, she should be good at that. Well, at least I think so…" Lisanna leaned forward on the bench and looked into the man's eyes as she rested her head in her hands. "I haven't been the ones training her."

"I've made sure she knows everything she needs to know to do the job, and Mira has joined in for some small group activities. But I think this will be the first time she will be a part of a fireteam."

"Well, as long as she was trained correctly, you should all be able to move as one, right?"

"Well, I'd put her in a group where the members all work seamlessly, I can think of one like that."

"Hey, Lis, could I get a white chocolate mocha, to go?"

"Sure!" The woman smiled as she straightened up, smiling as she stretched her limbs and got to work on his coffee. "It'll just be a moment, want to round up your guests while you wait?"

"Sounds good to me." Natsu turned and walked back to the table. "Just waiting for a coffee then we can head over to the Director's office."

"Juvia is fine with that." The blunette rose to her feet and stretched, her skin was slowly going back to its usual pale white tone. "Gajeel and Juvia were just discussing the meeting."

"Speaking of which, I think we have kept your Director waiting long enough." Gajeel said as he stood next to his subordinate. "Once your coffee is here then we should probably head there right away."

"We'll be heading past my office, so I might stick my head in and pick up a few strays on our way there. We'll see what happens."

"Here you go, Natsu." Lisanna cheered as she appeared next to the man with a takeaway coffee cup, complete with lid. "Be careful, it's still hot."

"Thanks Lis." He took the cup and had a sip of it. "It's good. We better head out, you two." Natsu turned on the spot and headed for the exit with the two Phantoms in tow.

"How much farther is it to the office?" Gajeel asked as he looked around at the surrounding offices. The man covered his mouth as he yawned. "We have travelled a fair way to get here and I could use some rest."

"Makarov will probably see you to your temporary lodging. I won't be sticking around for your meeting as I have my own things I need to do."

The man remained silent as he led the group up the stairs and down some more corridors until he reached the woman sat at a desk in front of Director Makarov's office.

"Agent Salamander, how may I help you?" She asked as her eyes rose from the computer screen in front of her. "These are the guests that are scheduled to see Director Makarov?"

"Yes, Charlotte, we are a tad late as there was a few hold-ups and I treated them to lunch."

"Go right in." The woman gestured to the door off to her right. "Agent Raiden is in there too."

"Alright." Natsu walked to the double doors and pushed them open, revealing Makarov who was sitting behind his desk, his eyes on the screen to the left.

The pinkette strode into the room as his eyes scanned around, he spotted Laxus sitting on a couch near an ignited fireplace. The man was reading a book, the title partially hidden by his hand as it cradled the spine.

"Ah, there you are. Take a seat, please." He gestured to the seats in front of his desk. "Natsu, I'm sure you're needed down in the simulation halls."

"I am, Sir. I'll see you later." Natsu turned on the ball of his foot and walked between the Phantoms as he left the office and headed back down the hall.

The salmon-haired man placed his hands into his pockets as he made his way back to his office. Whistling a tune as he walked.

When he opened the door, he came face to face with his white-haired handler, her hands firmly set on her hips as she looked at him, clearly displeased. "How long have you been standing at the door like that?"

"She has been there for a good fifteen minutes." Lucy called out from the couch where she was lying down with a fashion magazine. "Exactly like that."

She took Natsu's earlier suggestion to heart and had changed into tight black pants, held up by a thick belt that held her Ruger-57 on her right hip, and her Key Pouch just a bit further back. Tucked into her pants was a form-fitting black long-sleeve shirt, she had also donned a pair of black military boots which hung off the edge of the arm of the couch.

Mira pouted at the man and quickly sat on his desk as she rubbed her heels. "Oww, I didn't realise standing like that would hurt so much."

"Why the hell did you do it then?" Natsu closed the door behind him and walked over to the blonde, bending down to check out what she was looking at. "Oh, that's a hot piece of lingerie. You thinking about getting some?"

"Not this one. I found a nice white lace set that I liked." She flicked back a few pages and showed it to the man. "I think it would look good on me."

"That looks like it would suit you nicely, but you should also get a darker set. Maybe a maroon colour? So it contrasts with your skin better."

"I see what you mean. I'll check later to see what colours they come in." Lucy closed the magazine and sat up. "Is it time?"

"Yeah, we should start heading down soon. Good to see that you have followed my suggestion and have gotten into more suitable gear."

"Yeah, that Ruger that you ordered for me turned up yesterday, it handles really well." The blonde got to her feet with a smile as she pulled the gun free and flipped it in her hand as she held the pistol out, grip-first.

"Nice." Natsu took the pistol and turned away from the two women as he checked it over. "I chose it for you because it is chambered for the FN 5.7x28mm, so it had good penetration. It also is fairly ergonomic, plus it's also designed ambidextrously so if you want to learn how to dual-wield like I do then it would be easy to just grab another."

He handed it back to her with a smile. "I'm guessing you have already tested it out?"

"Yeah, I felt no kick at all… even when firing it from a single hand."

"That is due to our enhancements, we can make even the most brutal guns have no kick whatsoever." Natsu gave her a pat on the shoulder as he turned back to the door. "Alright, we've killed enough time already so let's go do your test."

The man led the two women out of the room and back down the hall towards the cluster of elevators. "Mira, I'm guessing that you'll be acting as Control for the test?"

"Yes, I've already been briefed on what I need to know to act as the Handler for the evaluation. I'll explain more when we get there." She glanced at Lucy, the last part being directed at her. "Don't worry Lucy, it should go smoothly."

"I know, I have both of you as my teachers, and you are both considered two of the best Agents. So I know I've been in good hands." The blonde fiddled with her hands as she was still slightly nervous none the less.

"Just follow your training, the rest of the team would be trained Agents, so you just have to go with the flow really. I've taught you in such a way that you'll work well both alone and in a small team." Natsu glanced back with a smile. "You'll pass, I'm sure of it."

"Thanks, both of you." Lucy took a few deep breaths as Natsu hit the button for the elevator. She worked on calming her nerves while she waited patiently.

"So, who do you think is paired with her?" The pinkette turned to his handler as he crossed his arms. "I haven't heard a thing about it so I'm curious."

"I think you'll either be surprised, or you won't be. Either way, I don't think there will be any problems."

"Okay then…" Natsu turned as the doors opened, a group of Operatives left the elevator and gave the three Agents a quick salute as they headed for their lunch break. Once it was empty, Natsu led the group into it and hit the button to one of the sublevels. "Hopefully my brother won't be too much of a pain in the ass."

"It'll be fine, Natsu. You are worrying too much." Mira smiled at the man as she stood next to Lucy. The blonde trying to keep her mind off of the situation.

The group remained silent for the rest of the trip, leaving only the elevator music to fill the void. The doors opened and Lucy took a deep breath, trying to calm her nerves as she followed Natsu and Mira out of the elevator.

The air was thick with the gravity of the upcoming test. If she passes, no, when she passes she'll be able to take on missions. She knew that at first she'll still be paired with Natsu to make sure things go smooth enough, but once she has enough experience in fieldwork, then she can go out on her own.

Natsu pushed open the door as he led the way in, spotting his brother and Mavis standing across the room. They were in front of a glass panel that looked out upon the simulation, upon the glass itself were the security feeds from the cameras within the sim. "So I take it this will be command and control for all sides?"

"Oh Natsu, I didn't hear you arrive." Zeref spun around to face his younger brother. He quickly reached over and turned off the camera feeds. "Yeah, Mira could you please stay here. Natsu, could you take Lucy into the room over there." The black-haired man pointed his right, through a door that presumably led to the Ready Room.

"Gotcha. Come on, Lucy." The pinkette turned and headed to the room with Lucy in tow. He grabbed the handle and opened the door for her.

"You go in too, Natsu." Zeref called out as he handed Mira a headset. "You'll be on her team."

"How'd I know you'd do that?"

"Because it makes sense to have you on it, you trained her so you work best with her. So get your ass in there already, oh and don't tell her anything about the test, as that is Mira's job."

"Alright, alright. I'll make sure not to influence it, just be aware that all of us will be functioning as a unit."

Natsu walked into the room and closed the door behind him, he went to walk further into the room but bumped into the back of Lucy. "Huh?"

The man looked over the head of the stunned agent and found himself looking at something that shouldn't have surprised him at all…

"Good afternoon, Natsu." Erza said with a smile as she leant against the other side of the table from them.

Over by a weapons bench stood Gray, he was midway working on his gear as he turned to the newcomers. "Sup man, hey Lucy."

"Of fucking course." Natsu started to chuckle as he walked around the woman. "Giving us a fighting chance against the hell that I have put us up against."

He spun around at the centre of the room and sat against the edge of the table. "Well, Lucy, welcome to your team. You've already met Agent Knight and Frosty the Snowman."

"Hey, chill. We've got an assessment to conduct." Gray held out an appeasing hand. "Let's keep the banter to a minimum."

* * *

**First off, sorry for the wait, I've been working on my other story but I decided this one needed some TLC and came back to this chapter to smash it out. I hope you have enjoyed it, the next one will be up as soon as I get it done. I'll be going back to Continued Life to do two or so more chapters before coming back to this one as I want to smash out that GMG arc and get from the good stuff to the really good stuff. **

**I don't want to rush things as I'm still setting up future chapters but I seriously can't wait for the Phantom arc, I've got so many ideas for it ranging from the Osprey carrying Agent Salamander and some Operatives to the battlefield being shot down, to Agent Beast waltzing into the battlefield with a M2 .50cal machine gun and clad in heavy ballistic armour with a massive ammo pack on his back that feeds the machine gun. I'm So Hyped For It but I've got to get to it first and I need to do it properly.**

**Anyway, again, I hope you have enjoyed and I'll see you all next time, bye for now!**


	17. Chapter 17

**Ready Room – Simulation Room 6, FTA HQ**

"So, now that we are all here, M, can you fill us in?" Agent Salamander walked past the blonde woman as he made his way to the weapon racks.

A holographic window opened above the table, revealing the white-haired woman as another hologram activated, projecting the high-rise that they'll be infiltrating.

"Our job is to extract a VIP from the upper floors of this high-rise. Our Intel is limited on this op, so we'll most likely have to improvise when in the field."

"Improvisation is the name of the game." Sal glanced over his shoulder with a grin, but it fell away as he turned back to the limited range of training weapons. His voice dropped to a mutter as he frowned at the wall. "I fucking hate the Beretta 92 series…"

"What we do know, is that the VIP is on the third floor down from the roof. So, with that in mind." M made the hologram zoom in on the rooftop. "You'll be fast-roping down into the roof and finding an entry point into the building, which will be up to your four to decide."

"Do we know the exact location of the VIP?" Celeste queried as she leaned in to inspect the hologram. "Where on the third floor are they?"

"Latest intel puts them in a meeting room, here." A light blipped on the hologram. "But they could have moved from there."

"Hmm, that's near the outside windows…" The blonde woman slowly rotated the hologram as she started to come up with ideas. "Could we rappel down the side and enter through a window?"

Knight looked over from next to Sal, they had been discussing what weapons to take. "I like the idea, but chances are that we'll have the entire force come down on us if we do that."

"Knight is right." Demon added. "We have reports of heavy activity inside the building, expect a sizeable opposing force."

"I still think it's a possibility, we just have to pack for a firefight in case we can't extract the VIP quickly." Celeste pushed her idea as she pointed at the roof then traced her finger down to the windows closest to the meeting room. "If we make use of the ascenders that come with the rappel kits then we could hoist the VIP up to the roof where we could be extracted."

"I like it!" Sal grinned at the woman as he cocked the M416 A5 that he was holding. "They won't be expecting it, so we have the advantage of surprise, if we capitalise on the surprise and blitz through there, then we could be in and out before any interference arrives."

"Majority rules." Frost said as he grabbed an armoured vest and threw it to Celeste. "Armour up, people, it's party time!"

"Alright, we go loud then." Knight commanded as she pulled another training spec M416 off of the wall. "Get kitted and pack for a full house. Frost, take some breaching charges."

"Copy that."

"Eyes and ears." Sal's hand glowed as he brought a small case from his magical pocket dimension and placed the tactical contacts, earpieces, and throat mic in their place. "Don't want to be flashbanged and have to pay the price of negligence."

"Speaking of which, Sal, grab that wall-mounted grenade launcher and some flashbangs to go in it." Knight said as she walked over to Celeste, the redhead grabbed a hold of the woman's vest and made sure that it was fitted properly and would protect her plentiful assets. "Looks good, grab yourself some gear and meet me by the door out of here."

"Alright." Celeste moved past the older woman and walked over to the salmon-haired agent. "Sal, what should I take?"

"Grab the M27 IAR, we'll need the suppressive fire capability if things go pear-shaped. Grab several fifty round mags too." The man placed the rifle down on the bench in front of her. "Keep it on Semi until things start kicking off, then switch to Full-Auto."

"Gotcha. Why can't I take my Ruger 57 in?"

"They don't have training rounds in 5.7mm. Trust me, I know how you feel, I'd rather be using my Glock 20s but I'm stuck with these 9mm Barrettas."

"Are you two ready yet?" Knight called out from the doorway that led to the sim. "Clock's ticking."

"In a sec, Knight. Grab the rest of your gear and follow me." Sal slid some thirty round mags into his kit then attached the M416 to the mounting points on his back. He did a quick check of his gear then walked over to the rest of the team.

"Are we definitely following her plan?" Frost asked curiously as he slid a protective helmet onto his head.

"Yes, no arguing either Knight." The pinkette quickly replied as he grabbed a helmet and put it on. "This is her assessment, so if she wants to play it fast and loud, then I'm all for it."

"I understand."

"Good, here she comes, so make sure you're all set to move out." The man grabbed the last helmet and turned to the approaching blonde. "Put this on, have you grabbed a rappel kit?"

"Yes, Sir. It's in one of my pouches." Celeste gave the man a nod and put the helmet on. She gave herself a pat-down as she checked her gear then gave him the thumbs-up. "Ready to roll, Sir."

"Agent Celeste…" Sal grumbled as his eyes narrowed at her through the visor of his full-face helmet. "How many times do I have to tell you not to call me "Sir", well?"

"Hopefully," The agent in question cocked her rifle. "Today will be the last day, we'll be equals."

"While it's true that you'll no longer be my protégé, you still have a lot to learn." The pinkette's tone was deadly serious but a smile graced his face moments later. "Now, let's get this over with."

"Follow me, I prepped a drone before you two arrived." Knight informed the duo as she pushed the doors open. "It's set to take us to the rooftop."

"This'll be the first time you've seen a Sim Room, isn't it Celeste?" Frost asked as he fell into position behind the redhead, glancing over his shoulder at the two following agents.

"Yeah."

"Well, I think you'll be in for a surprise."

"Why is that?"

COMM: "The simple answer to that question is the sheer size of the Sim Rooms, with the one you are about to enter being on the larger side." M replied through their earpieces. "You'll see in a few seconds."

"Celeste, you're first up." Knight announced as they reached a door, she stepped to the side and placed her hand on the doorknob, only opening the door when the blonde had reached her.

As Agent Celeste stepped out of the hall, she became blinded by glare and had to raise a hand to block out the light while her eyes adjusted. The light quickly dimmed and Celeste lowered her hand, her jaw-dropping at the sight. "Holy shit…"

The team of agents had exited onto a skyscraper's rooftop, surrounded on all sides by buildings both tall and short. A flock of pigeons cooed as they flew past, the rustling of their wings and the breeze of the wind reaching the shocked woman.

"I still remember my first time, I had the same reaction." Sal grinned at the rest of the team. "Such a sensory overload that I froze on the spot."

"How is this possible?"

Knight smiled softly as she walked around the woman and stood in front of her, she gestured out towards the city around them. "A combination of holograms, displays, and practical effects. The smaller rooms are easier to set up than these larger ones but you can't ignore the benefits of these larger ones, they are very immersive."

"Just how big is this place?" Celeste murmured as she wandered about the rooftop, looking out at the city she couldn't discern what was real and what was fake, it looked exactly like a real city, just like Magnolia or Hargeon.

"Sim Room 6?" Sal placed a hand on the back of his head as he had to think about it for a moment. "You know what, I think I'll leave you guessing, but try and focus on the mission."

"This way." The redhead ordered as she led the way to the drone helicopter waiting for them nearby, it had bundles of rope attached to hooks near its doors. "Two aside."

Sal and Celeste took a seat on the edge of the floor on the left side of the aircraft as Knight and Frost took their place on the right side, the wind picking up as the downdraft from the rotor blades washed down around them.

COMM: "We'll be using comms from here on out, easier to hear each other that way." Sal glanced at the blonde sat next to him, his voice coming out over the earpieces as the helicopter took off. "It's only a short hop from here, a few minutes. Should we go over the plan once more?"

COMM: "It's for the best." Knight replied, her voice neutral. "Once our boots hit the roof we'll make our way to the southern side of the building and deploy our rappel lines. Copy?" The woman was met with a simultaneous 'Copy' from the three other members, prompting her to continue. "We hook up and rappel down three floors, pop a window to the room next to where the VIP should be then we breach the wall and snatch the VIP and get out."

COMM: "Let's hope that Murphy doesn't show his face again." Frost said as he nudged Knight with his elbow. "Hey?"

COMM: "At this point, Frosty, I'd be upset if he didn't show his face." Sal twisted around and looked through the cabin at the raven-haired agent. "We've become such good friends over the years."

COMM: "I hear that, man. Seems like every other mission he shows his face."

COMM: "More like every mission for me."

COMM: "Cut the chatter you two, we are coming in on our approach so get ready to move." Knight cut the two men off. She felt a chill run through her body as they passed through a barrier that caused her magic to feel thick like sludge. "There is an MSF in play, looks like we'll be doing this the hard way."

COMM: "What's the play?" Sal glanced at the redhead, curiously. "Are we knocking out the MSF or are we leaving it?"

COMM: "Leave it, we don't have the luxury of time to look for it." Knight adjusted her gloves and pulled the pin on the bundle of rope by her as they came to a hover above the structure.

The woman was the first one out of the helicopter, sliding down the rope with her eyes glued to the rooftop.

As her feet hit the ground she stepped to the side and brought up her rifle, sweeping around for hostiles as a second pair of feet landed next to her with two more soft thumps landed behind her moments later, alerting her to the rest of her team landing on the roof.

COMM: "Looks like Murphy decided to join us." Sal murmured as he jogged over to the south side of the building, he placed his rifle on his back and pull the rappel kit from one of his pouches. "No magic, no fire."

COMM: "We'll burn that bridge when we get there. Frost, Celeste, set your lines up while I cover you." Agent Knight turned on the spot and took a knee as she swept the rifle around the roof.

The three agents hooked their lines onto the base of a water tank and gave them a tug before throwing the lines down the side of the building. They placed their automatic ascender/descender onto the ropes and Sal moved to Knight's side with his rifle raised.

"All set, your turn to hook-in, be quick, they might have spotted the lines."

"Got it." The redhead turned as she placed her rifle on her back and opened the pouch with her kit.

She quickly hooked onto the tower and threw the rest of the rope over the edge. With a click, she snapped her ascender onto the line.

"All set, let's go." Knight put the device into descend and led the way over the edge.

Sal gave it a few moments before he ran to the edge, his hand wrapping around the device and engaging the neutral as he leapt from the roof.

He saw the rest of his team waiting for him by a window on the third flow as his momentum carried him in an arc.

COMM: "Bust this window, Sal. We have visual confirmation that the VIP is in the room next to it." Knight ordered as she pointed at the pane of glass between the three of them.

The ascender clicked as the agent locked it, his arm cocking back as he rocketed toward the building.

SMASH

Sal's gloved fist collided with the corner of the glass pane, shattering the corner and allowing for the man to get a grip on it and rip it free of the frame.

Agent Knight pushed off the side of the building and swung into the building, unhooking herself mid-swing and landing with her rifle raised.

She was quickly joined by Celeste who dropped to a knee beside her. The redhead pointed the woman to the door as she turned to Sal and Frost as they entered one after the other.

COMM: "Celeste, switch to full auto and cover that doorway. Sal, Frost, make us a new door."

The two men walked to the wall, Sal pulling out the wall injector while Frost pulled out a breaching charge.

It only took them a few seconds to set the charges, their deft hands working quickly.

When they finished, the three Agents stacked up near the entrance they were about to make, Knight gave the nod to proceed.

Sal fired his device first, shooting three flashbangs one after another into the room next door.

"FUCK! FLASHBANGS!"

**BOOM**

The wall blew open at the same time as the flashbangs detonated.

Frost entered the room first, clearing to the left. He shot each hostile twice, once in the chest and once in the head.

Sal was hot on his heels, taking down the hostiles to the right.

Knight walked in behind them, checking the room for any other hostiles before heading to the dazed VIP. "Come with us, Sir."

COMM: "Demon, we have the VIP, extracting now."

The sound of rapid bursts of gunfire echoed through the hole in the wall as Celeste opened the door and started taking down the reinforcements.

Sal stepped back into the previous room and made his way to Celeste. "You good?"

The blonde was firing from a kneeled position, firing short bursts at her targets to either hit them or suppress them. "Yeah, the plan is going well?"

"Just gotta get the VIP up to the roof and on the chopper." The salmon-haired agent started sending rounds down the hallway, making sure to keep heads down as Frost and Knight took the VIP to their entrance.

"Frost, go up first and clear the roof, I'll follow with the VIP." Knight ordered as she started putting a harness onto the man they were escorting and hooked them to herself.

"Moving."

Sal glanced back at the two agents then down at the woman next to him. "Go with them, they'll need your firepower if things get heated up on the roof. I'll cover the Exfil."

"Good luck, Sir." Celeste turned on the spot and ran back to the exterior hole.

The pinkette quickly switched to the left side of the door and kept sending single rounds down the hall every time a head popped out.

He heard the whine of the electric motors in the ascenders as they pulled the agents up the side of the building.

A soft ding echoed through the gunfire, causing Sal to blink as he processed it. His eyes widened as realisation struck him. "Shit! Knight get that VIP out of here, the elevator just dinged so things are about to get crazy down here!"

"It's the strike team, isn't it?" The redhead shouted back. Before Sal and Celeste had turned up to the Ready Room, she and Frost had been given a brief rundown of the specific events that were planned to happen.

"Most likely, I'll be up there soon." Sal placed the M416 onto his back and pressed his back against the wall.

Knight hit the switch on her ascender as she leapt back out of the window, she quickly disappeared upwards which left Agent Salamander alone on the third floor.

The pinkette took a deep breath as the sound of footsteps came closer, the steps barely made any sound but Sal could hear them clearly.

They were his fellow agents but he didn't know who they belonged to just yet. He couldn't hear them talking so he guessed they were communicating on a different frequency.

Sal took a quiet but deep breath as he readied himself to attack.

The agents continued to draw closer to his position and the salmon-haired man began to wonder just who was sent in.

He quickly pushed the thought out of his head as he heard the group split into two.

Four sets of footsteps entered the room next to him just as two agents entered into his room.

A fist rocketed towards the agent who had swept their rifle to the right, the heavy blow colliding with their stomach and knocking them to the floor.

The commotion alerted the other members of the strike team, the second agent immediately whipping around to attack.

They were quickly disarmed by a swift kick from the pinkette as he sent the rifle flying out the missing window.

"Shit!"

Sal grinned as he continued with the momentum and pivoted around, landing another kick to the side of the agent's head, knocking them to the floor. "Hello there, Agent Sandman."

"Freeze!" The first agent shouted as they raised their rifle at the pinkette.

"So this one is Agent Picasso." Sal muttered as he grabbed the barrel of the rifle and ripped the gun free of his grip.

The man whipped his arm back, throwing the rifle through the hole in the wall right as another hostile agent was about to walk through it.

"Fuck! It's Agent Salamander!" Agent Picasso shouted shortly before Sal delivered a heavy punch to his helmet, severely cracking the visor.

An explosion rocked the floor and the pressure put on the pinkette's magic suddenly vanished, the MSF had been destroyed.

Sal turned to deal with the agents coming through the wall but was met with a very quick, heavy punch seemingly out of nowhere.

"Too slow!"

"Agent Raptor, what's the count at now?" The man slowly turned to the source of the voice, his visor cracked from the high-speed punch.

He reached up and took the helmet off, it would have only been a hindrance from now on.

"You know it would be easier to just shoot him, right?" A woman said as she entered the room, her rifle raised at the pinkette.

"I wouldn't be so sure of that, Agent Oak…" Sal grinned over his shoulder, his arm whipped back as he threw the helmet at her head.

Raptor vanished from where he stood, using his unrivalled speed to assault the salmon-haired man with a flurry of punches.

Sal grunted as the rapid strikes rained down upon him, his world instantly slowed as he activated his Reflex, a grin spreading across his face as his body primed itself.

The man grabbed an incoming fist and threw the attacker into the nearby wall.

He moved with explosive speed as he closed the distance and sent a fist straight into Raptor's stomach, cracking the plasterboard wall and splintering the frame inside.

The punch was followed by a torrent of successive devastating punches, forcing the agent further into the wall as the rapid, solid thumps echoed around the office.

Sal took a step back then turned and sidestepped to the man as he launched a powerful kick to the agent's stomach, forcing him through the wall and into the next room.

"OPEN FIRE!"

'That sounded like Agent Ivy.' The man turned and dived under the slow-moving gunfire.

The pinkette moved to Sandman first, dodging the fire from his pistol and landing a heavy kick to the prone man's stomach, sending him into the wall.

"Fuck, fuck, fuck! I didn't sign up for this!"

'Agent Radar… no surprises there. Don't know why he is here, he usually works in intelligence gathering and interrogation.' Sal decided to leave him for last, he launched after Oak and dived into a tackle.

Wood burst from Oak's body, encasing the man in an ornately designed and door-less 'Iron' maiden in an attempt to protect herself from the extremely lethal agent.

The wooden maiden hit the floor hard and tumbled to a stop in the corner of the room. Agent Oak press a hand against her chest and took deep breaths to soothe her rapidly beating heart. "Did we get him?"

"Hopefully, who have we lost?" Agent Ivy asked as he moved to the hole that his friend had been punched through.

"Picasso, Raptor, and Sandman are down for the count, Zeref's orders." Oak replied as she walked over to the window that had been removed and looked up the ropes. "Radar, Ivy, come with me. It looks like they are up on the roof."

A dull thump echoed around the room as the trio made for the door out of the room.

"Please don't tell me…" Radar muttered as he turned to the wooden casket.

The wood started to splinter as a louder thump echoed around the room.

"Oh Fuck!" Oak shouted, a chill shooting up her spine as she raised her rifle at the wooden maiden. "Get ready!"

A third thump echoed from the corner, the wood splintering as the front cracked open enough for a lone green eye to peer out of.

The wood exploded in a shower of splinters as Sal burst out of the wooden maiden, he turned on the spot and grabbed the slab of wood, throwing the torture device at the three remaining agents and in turn blocking their firing line.

"Nice seeing you all." Sal watched the wood come crashing down upon the agents and knocking them flat on their asses. "But we have to cut this short, I'm busy conducting Celeste's assessment."

He flashed them a grin as he walked to the window and grabbed onto the ascender, not bothering to hook-in as he gave them a wave and raced up to the roof.

As he reached the roof, he was met with heavy gunfire. Sal quickly climbed up over the edge and ran into cover beside Agent Knight who was firing her rifle at the new hostiles. "Where The Hell Did They All Come From?"

"It's the QRF. They turned up when the MSF shit itself!" The redhead replied as she ducked down into cover.

"What's a QRF?" Celeste shouted over the racket of her M27 firing on full-auto.

"Quick Reaction Force! Think like a rapid response unit!" The salmon-haired agent shouted back as he took his rifle off his back. "I've dealt with the other agents."

"Who were they?" Knight asked, her curiosity slipping out from her trained stoicism.

"Max, Reedus, Jet, Droy, Warren, and Laki. Don't ask me why they signed up for it, but my best guess is that they thought they'll only be going up against Celeste, they were shocked when they realised they were up against me."

"I hope they realise that she isn't a pushover…" The redhead muttered, but shook her head and pointed at Sal's face. "Helmet?"

"Raptor landed a full speed punch on it, fucked the visor so bad that I couldn't see a thing out of it. So I ditched it."

"Better make sure that you don't take a bullet to the face then." Knight popped up and unleashed a quick burst of gunfire.

COMM: "M, what's the ETA on the Heli?" Sal looked around as he tried to spot the drone that took them to the building.

"Hey Man, Think You Can Do Your Thing Here?" Frost called out from the other side of Celeste.

Sal glanced over the cover but ducked back quickly as a paint-bullet skidded along the top of the metal ducting. "It's a bit thick, counting incoming and outgoing fire. Not to mention that we seem to be outnumbered by about five-to-one!"

COMM: "Sal, it's too hot for a pick-up. Clear the roof and we'll bring in the drone."

The man grumbled as he looked around, his mind running like a bullet train as he planned the next move. "Celeste! How many mags do you have left?"

The blonde glanced over as she pulled a fresh mag from her pouch in time for her gun to run dry, she dropped the empty mag from the automatic rifle and slid the new one into the well. She racked the bolt and continued to lay down highly accurate suppressive fire. "I'm on my sixth one!"

'Six more to go.' Sal looked past the woman at the raven-haired agent. "Frosty, how are you on ammo?"

"Eight left!"

Knight ducked back behind cover to reload her M416, her attention turning to the man next to her as she fluidly reloaded without paying attention to her rifle. "I'm down to five now, what is your plan?"

"I'm going to do what I do best. Cause havoc among hostile troops." Agent Salamander grinned as he drew the twin training Baretta pistols from their holsters. "When the bird comes, get on-board ASAP."

COMM: "M, bring the drone in low and keep it below the edge of the roof. When I have distracted them enough I want you to bring it up so the rest of the team can board."

COMM: "Copy that, Sal. Give 'em hell!"

"I'll signal when I'm about to attack, be careful who you shoot." The man told Knight as he started to scoot away.

The redhead agent gave him a playful grin as she cocked her rifle. "Now I'm going to shoot you in the leg just because you said that."

"Good luck actually landing the hit." Sal moved around the corner of the metal vents and skirted around the group of hostiles.

He came to a stop once he was in their blind spot, he glanced over the cover and got ready to assault the QRF.

COMM: "Here we go." The man announced as he leapt over the ducting and sprinted at the group, his senses going into overdrive as the world around him slowed rapidly.

It was as if a hurricane tore through the attacking force, Sal had drawn his 92s and ripped through the group.

"Fuck!" One of the hostiles shouted as they turned their attention to the agent, followed by a few others.

Flashes of salmon hair surged around the group as the crackles of 9mm thundered around the group.

True to her word, Sal sensed a bullet racing towards his leg, fired by Knight.

Sal swept the legs out from under one of the hostiles then brought his leg down upon their gut, forcing them down into the path of the bullet.

He promptly flipped the bird at the woman and continued with his assault.

COMM: "M, ETA on that drone?"

COMM: "It's about to be in position beside the building… It's there now."

COMM: "You heard the woman, GET TO ZE CHOPPA!" Sal couldn't help but grin wildly as his 92s fired rapidly.

A chorus of audible groans echoed through the comms as the helicopter rose so the cabin was level with the roof.

"Cover me then get onto the Heli!" Knight grabbed the VIP and dragged them to their waiting ride, she leapt across the small gap and pushed the VIP into a seat, she put herself between the door and the VIP and opened fire at the hostiles.

"Let's move Celeste!" Frost called out as he turned and made a break for the chopper.

The blonde slipped a new mag into her rifle as she walked backwards, covering the man as she moved the rifle's sight from target to target, sending bursts of fire downrange.

COMM: "Don't wait up for me, I'll be there as soon as it's clear." Sal glanced at the blonde who met his gaze and gave him a nod as she turned and jumping into the waiting helicopter.

COMM: "Sal, I'm moving the drone a safe distance away and will hold it there until further notice."

COMM: "Copy that, M." Out of the corner of his eye, the pinkette saw the helicopter pull up and start to retreat the hot zone. He continued to evade the ever-weakening fire as he returned his own gunfire.

As the last body limply fell to the ground, with a mark of paint over their heart and on the visor of their helmet, Sal straightened and holstered his training pistols as he looked at his evac. 'It's a bit far… but I think I can make that distance, I'd have to grab the ropes though.'

COMM: "Bringing the chopper in for a pick-up." M announced as the helicopter turned to the building.

COMM: "Negative, I can make that jump."

COMM: "You're nuts, Sir…" Celeste replied as she poked her head out of the side, she could just see the Agent's hair standing out among the bodies, they were too far for her to make out any other details. "That distance is too great."

Sal moved out of the field of bodies so he didn't tread on them when he made the jump, he glanced over his shoulder at the operators. "Hey, you guys did really well, I owe you all a few rounds of drinks so feel free to hit me up at some point. Enjoy your bonuses!"

All the man got back were groans, he might have been a little too rough with them and they might have some bruises after this, but he made sure that he didn't break any bones.

Once he was free to move about he quickly broke out into a run and then to a sprint as he raced towards the edge, his eyes glued to the helicopter.

His muscles primed themselves with explosive power as Sal leapt to the edge of the roof and propelled himself through the air with a powerful jump.

The wind rushed through his spikey hair as he flew through the air, gunning for the helicopter. He knew he wouldn't make the cabin, but he was betting on being able to grab onto the ropes that still hung from the aircraft.

Sal reached out as he approached the ropes, snatching one in a firm grip. His momentum carried him up, swinging on the rope like a vine as it arced up.

He was quickly snatched up by Knight as she dragged the man into the cabin. "That was a close one, Sal. Any higher and you would have been ran through the blades like a blender."

The pinkette chuckled as he took a seat inside the helicopter. "Thanks for the save." He turned to the blonde sat next to him with a broad smile. "Well, Lucy. In my eyes you have passed, but it isn't up to me. Zeref, Makarov, and a few others will be reviewing the audio logs, and the recordings from both our contacts and the cameras, once they have sorted their shit out they'll contact you about it."

"I can't wait." The blonde smiled eagerly as she lifted her helmet off her head and looked around at the other agents. "Thank for all of your help."

"Glad to have lent a hand." Gray replied as he sat back in the seat. "So, who was the VIP?"

Erza reached over and removed the burlap sack that was hiding the identity of their VIP, revealing a man with vibrant green hair. "Oh, good afternoon, Freed."

"I'll be honest, I thought it would have taken a lot longer to be rescued, even with the three of you helping her." The greenette man said as he fidgeted in his bindings. "Mind giving me a hand?"

"It was Lucy's idea to rappel down the side of the building and breach through the window, we're just lucky you hadn't been moved." The redhead replied as she reached behind the man with her knife and cut him free.

"I was supposed to be moved once things started kicking off, but you happened to bypass that plan fairly effectively."

"And what was the deal with Max and the others?" Gray asked casually as he took a look out the side of the helicopter.

"Max was at the head of that idea, he wanted to prove something it seems, something along the lines of beating Salamander's Protégé to prove something or other." Freed waved a hand as he trailed off and started to rub his wrists as he glanced at Natsu. "Who knows, but even if she was alone in the assessment, I'm not stupid enough to ignore the fact that she had been trained by you and Mira."

"Well, hopefully, I wasn't too rough with the poor fuckers." Natsu grinned as the helicopter touched down on the rooftop. "Nice seeing you, Freed, remind me to buy you a drink sometime for participating in this."

"I'll keep it in mind, Natsu." The greenette said as he disembarked from the aircraft and made his way through the nearby doors without a glance back.

"I kinda feel sorry for the other guys, you know?" Natsu said as he stepped out of the helicopter and turned to the group. "They didn't seem to have all that much cohesion. Attacking me one at a time instead of all together."

"I'll be honest, Natsu." Erza replied as she gathered up her rifle and walked to the man's side. "I doubt they'd have stood a chance even if they did that."

Lucy looked curiously between the two seasoned agents as she and Gray joined them, forming a circle. "What makes you say that?"

"Natsu, here, is proficient in all manners of martial arts as well as offensive and defensive fighting techniques and forms, and will seamlessly transition between them." The redhead gave the man a gentle shove to the shoulder with a smile. "He tends to fight with those who he knows will not pull any strikes, and when they aren't available then he would set up all the bots in the gym to a randomised playlist of styles, and have them all come at him at once."

"Suffice to say, Lucy." Natsu chuckled and shoved the woman in return. "I haven't taught you everything I know, only enough to ensure that you are a capable field agent and can survive on your own regardless of what is thrown at you, with time though I plan on bringing you up to the level we are on."

"To that point, if you feel that you need further training or even just a sparring partner then feel free to ask any of us. We'd be happy to help." Gray added with a grin. "As Natsu said, you're basically one of us now, so we can chip in and help train you when we are free."

"Anyway." Natsu turned and headed to the nearby doors. "We should get this gear cleaned and put away."

"So what's everyone's plans after this?" The red-haired woman asked as she followed the man into the ready room and placed her gear onto one of the benches. "I think I'm going to head into town, check out that place Mavis was talking about."

"I've got work to be done on my Camaro." Gray placed his unused gear back up on the racks and got stuck into cleaning his rifle. "Need to take it into Ashlyn's team for a service and a tune-up, it's been a little ragged out of the blue, so I want it to be sorted out as soon as possible."

"Unfortunately, I don't have much of a plan for today, I'll probably go back to my office." Natsu asked as he sat upon a bench, cleaning the two pistols. "What about you, Lucy, got any plans?"

"I need a shower, I swear I smell of gunpowder… Afterwards, though, I'm probably going to hit the gym again and set up some of the bots."

* * *

**Natsu's House, 7:45 pm**

"How did it go, Natsu?" Happy called out amidst a cacophony of gunfire coming from the TV.

"The test?" Natsu closed the door and poked his head into the lounge room, he saw that Happy was stuck into playing a game. "It went well, Lucy passed with flying colours in my opinion, she'll probably find out tonight or tomorrow about it."

"Good. Hey, have you heard anything about Romeo?" The human-looking exceed paused the game and turned to look at his adoptive father. "I saw him in the range today practising with some of the standard-issue weapons."

"No, the boy has been keeping his distance from me." Natsu sighed as his eyebrows furled with concern. "Ah well… Have you eaten?"

"I ordered pizza, yours is on the bench but you might need to reheat it a little." The blue-haired teen lifted a pizza box that was sat on the coffee table in front of him and turned back to the TV.

"Thanks, Kiddo." With a long yawn, Natsu walked to the kitchen and grabbed the box from the countertop. "Hope you don't have any homework?"

"Already finished it before you got home."

"Good." The pinkette stuck the pizza onto a plate and gave it a quick blast in the microwave before taking the plate into the garage. "I'll be in the garage if you need me."

Natsu stifled a yawn behind his free hand, his breath coming out in a thick, white fog. He placed the plate of pizza on his workbench and reached behind his back, his hand slipping under his jacket and gripping the Glock 29 back-up pistol.

He drew the pistol as he reached for a small parcel box with the FTA Logo emblazoned on the top, it had been put aside for when he had the time to spare. Natsu brought the handgun to his front and flicked the mag out on to the desk, with a flick of his hand he had wrapped his finger around the slide and pulled it back, ejecting the live round from the chamber as he placed the parcel next to the mag.

The now-empty G29 was placed down upon the bench as Natsu opened the package, it was a specially ordered kit from FTA's R&D department, containing their latest model of suppressor, and a mod kit for his G29 with a new barrel and a slide locking mechanism.

Natsu had specifically ordered it to make his back-up pistol as quiet as possible, the suppresser came with special synthetic rubber wafers that had a self-repair enchant to extend the life of the wafers beyond their standard capabilities. There was an extra set of wafers packaged with the suppressor for when the enchantment deteriorated and the wafers needed to be replaced.

His idea was to have his two G20 pistols as offensive suppressed handguns, and the shorter G29 pistol as a more concealable and clandestine alternative for where he wouldn't be able to carry two full-sized pistols.

Both types of pistols were loaded with high-powered 10mm cartridges developed and manufactured within the R&D facility, they also had an enchantment placed upon them to bring their sound level down into the subsonic region.

"Whatcha doing?"

Natsu's head snapped around to the door when he heard a familiar voice, yet it wasn't Happy who should have been the only other person in the house… He was looking into the curious brown eyes of Lucy who seemed to have come out of nowhere.

"Lucy… I didn't hear you arrive…" The pinkette grabbed a slice of pizza and bit into it. "When did you get here?"

"According to Happy, not long after you. So, what are you doing?" The woman's high heels clicked and clacked on the cold cement floor as she made her way over and lifted herself up onto the bench, her short black dress sliding over her pale skin.

"I've got some new stuff for my pistols, a slide lock for my G29 as well as a new barrel, and a new suppressor." Natsu grabbed the tube in his left hand and held it out for the woman to inspect.

"What's with this mechanism where it connects to the barrel?" Lucy asked as she pressed down on a spring-loaded tab.

"It's the barrel lock for the suppressor, it slots into the slots cut into the muzzle of the barrel and that is what holds it in position. This type of catch is much faster than screwing on a threaded suppressor." Natsu put the suppressor down and showed her the new barrel. "See the slots? My Glock 20s have the same setup but with an older version of this suppressor. I'm still waiting for the delivery of a set for those pistols."

"Why do you need to wait?"

"Because they are custom made, and they go through test fitting with a matched barrel to ensure tight tolerances, you don't want any wiggle room when in a gunfight as it could send your shots off target." Sal wiped his hand clean on a cloth and started to strip the pistol. "So why are you here?"

"I got bored at my house so I decided to come here." Lucy gave him a blasé shrug of her shoulders as she replied, she flicked a strand of hair behind her ear as she watched the man work. "Seriously, there is nothing good on TV and I'm not in the mood for much else."

"Quite the conundrum, unfortunately though, I don't really have anything exciting going on here. Just a little bit of machining and maybe testing the pistol once I am done."

"Oh! I bumped into Makarov before I left the HQ, he told me that I passed! But he just needs to finalise the paperwork. He did compliment my idea of coming in through the window though, apparently, it annoyed your brother a lot as apparently he had a carefully constructed plan where we would have made our way through the building, fighting of tougher and tougher forces." The blonde smirked as she chuckled quietly, her legs crossing over the other as she leant over for a better view.

"Poor bastard… that would explain why the rooftop became a shit-storm, he would have thrown everything at us, including the kitchen sink." The pinkette carefully made small modifications to the pistol then replaced the barrel and started to install the slide lock. "Well, you passed and now the real training begins. Things just get tougher from here on."

"I know, I know. But at least I can put your training into practice. Do you know what we'll be doing first?" Lucy watched the man work with keen interest, her eyes following the movement of his hands.

"I believe I have already mentioned it to you. We'll be retrieving a magical artefact from Duke Everlue, a Golden Celestial Key." Natsu turned his attention to the woman. "You're coming with me because of your expertise with Celestial Magic, and your Heartfilia matrilineal line. We know about how your women pass their knowledge down to their kids."

Lucy slowly nodded her head, it was no secret that she came from the Heartfilia Korzern CEO's family. "After my father's passing due to harsh battle with cancer that took his life after a four-year struggle, my mother took control of the company and was unable to keep adventuring with the twelve spirits, so she handed them out to be spread to other Celestial mages. My mother, it turns out, has a really good head for business, even better than what my father was like so our business saw a golden age."

"I know, it is part of your file." The pinkette chuckled and held up the completed pistol, testing the slide lock by engaging and disengaging it then engaging it and tugging on it with the force equal to firing the pistol. "What was your life at home like?"

"Cozy, my mother was able to balance her work-life and home-life very well. She actually encouraged me to go out and explore the world, she had even trained me in Celestial magic." Lucy smiled as she closed her eyes, visualising Layla's smiling face. "I've kept in contact with her, I talk to her a few times a week over video calls. I've told her that I live and work in Magnolia, but I haven't told her what I do exactly."

"I wouldn't be surprised if your spirits still keep in contact with her, does she have any keys still with her?"

"Just Leo." The woman hopped off the workbench as Natsu slotted a round into the chamber and placed the mag back into the G29. "He wanted to remain in service to her."

The pistol vanished from the pinkette's hand as he turned to Lucy with a raised eyebrow. "Just the one?"

"Yes, Aquarius made a fuss but she decided to stay with me, Cancer and Taurus offered their service to me, and I came across Sagittarius again about two years ago." Lucy smiled and dusted the back of her dress off, she quickly reached over and stole a slice of pizza as she turned back to the house. "That's enough about me, let's go watch a movie and have some celebratory drinks or something."

* * *

**I think I'll leave it here. Sorry for the long gap between uploads, I've been fairly busy recently and had this sitting half-completed for longer than I'd like to had, but here it is. I hope you have liked it, Lucy is an official agent now and can go on missions, the first one will be retrieving the Key from Everlue's potential dangerous hands and ensuring that the magical artefact falls into competent hands once more. I'll try to get that out faster than this one had been but I can't make any promises as my Course has ramped up its pace. Again, I hope you have liked it and sorry for the wait, I'll see you all next time.**


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